More than 100 young elite entrepreneurs from China and ASEAN (Association of Southeast AsianNations) countries met in Beijing Monday to discuss ways for business cooperation so as to promote common economic development in the region.

"China and ASEAN have kept an increasingly close relationship in bilateral cooperation of trade and business over recent years, with total trade turnover growing 20.86 percent each year on average," said Ni Jian, deputy secretary-general of the All-China Youth Federation, at the China-ASEAN Young Entrepreneurs Meeting.

In 2003, the trade volume between China and ASEAN stood at 78.25 billion US dollars, nearly 150-fold that of 1975.

ASEAN has become China's fifth largest trade partner, while China is the sixth largest trade partner of ASEAN, Ni said.

To further enhance the bilateral business cooperation, China and ASEAN leaders agreed in 2002 to set up a "China-ASEAN Free Trade Zone" before 2010.

"Both sides will carry out extensive economic restructuring and resources optimization," Ni said.

He called on the young entrepreneurs of China and ASEAN to strengthen exchanges and communication to advance trade and business cooperation, since they represent a significant force in the society and economy of their countries and play a crucial rolein national development.

Source: Xinhua