(Yicai) Feb. 25 -- German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has arrived in Beijing for a two-day visit, his first to China as leader of the German government, while also becoming the first foreign leader visiting the country in the new Year of the Horse.

Merz will lead a high-level economic and trade delegation through tomorrow, including about 30 executives from leading German companies from the auto, chemicals, biopharmaceuticals, mechanical manufacturing, circular economy, and other areas, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce announced yesterday.

Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Germany over 50 years ago, bilateral economic and trade ties have continuously deepened, the spokesperson said. The European nation has always been China's largest trading partner and source of foreign investment in Europe, the person noted.

The industries of China and Germany are deeply integrated, and the cooperation foundation has been continuously consolidated, the spokesperson stressed. In recent years, trade between the two has stayed above USD200 billion, and the two-way investment stock has exceeded USD65 billion, each accounting for nearly a quarter of that between China and the European Union, the person added.

This year marks the beginning of China's 15th Five-Year Plan for social and economic development, the spokepoerson said, noting that the country welcomes German firms to seize the new opportunities brought by its high-level opening-up, continue to consolidate cooperation in traditional fields with China, and at the same time, deeply explore the potential for alliance in emerging sectors, incluidng clean energy, embodied intelligence, biotechnology, and industrial digitalization, turning "cooperation opportunities" into tangible "cooperation achievements".

As the world's second and third largest economies, the sound development of China-Germany relations is in line with the interests of the two sides and the expectations of the world, said a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China.

China is willing to take Merz's visit as an opportunity to deepen mutual understanding and trust, enhance practical cooperation with Germany, and adhere to the principles of mutual respect, equality, and mutual benefit, promoting greater development of China-Germany relations and jointly contributing more to world peace and prosperity, the spokesperson pointed out.

Editor: Martin Kadiev