(Reuters):Cuba andChina pledged to build on their rapidly growing trade on Tuesday, ending two days of meetings with a vow to do more in industries like oil, pharmaceuticals, nickel, medical services and tourism.
Chinese Deputy Trade Minister Wei Jian Guo and Cuban Government Minister Ricardo Cabrisas said in Havana that they had set up a commission to work on joint investments in various sectors.
Bilateral trade between the two communist-run countries doubled in 2006 to nearly US$1.8 billion, according to the Chinese customs office.
Financed by credit
More than two thirds of the trade consisted of Chinese exports of machinery, transportation equipment, consumer and other goods financed by Chinese credits, while Cuba exported nickel, sugar, cigars, rum and services to China.
Chinese appliances now adorn most Cuban kitchens, Chinese buses and locomotives ply the highways and railways and Chinese cranes work the Caribbean island's ports.
"Both parties express their satisfaction with Cuba's complete meeting of all financial obligations," a final declaration at the end of the talks said.
According to the statement, the two countries renewed an agreement under which Cuba exports 400,000 tonnes of raw sugar annually to China and ratified Cuban plans to supply the Asian giant with nickel.
China pledged to continue financing exports of energy, transportation, telecommunications and other equipment and to expand imports of Cuban goods and services.
Cuba has two joint-venture pharmaceutical companies in China and a third company providing low-cost eye surgery, with others planned.
Petroleum sector
"Both parties agree to continue encouraging Chinese companies to participate in the petroleum sector of Cuba," the statement said.
Chinese oil and gas company Sinopec Corp is in a joint venture to extract oil in Cuba's western Pinar del Rio province, and other companies are considering offshore drilling in Cuba's Gulf of Mexico waters.
The statement said a joint-venture hotel in Shanghai would be completed in time for the2008 Olympics.
