China president in Greece for $1 billion port deal
From the Associated Press:
Chinese President Hu Jintao arrived in Greece on Monday for a three-day meeting coinciding with a $1 billion port deal. The deal gives Chinese company Cosco Pacific Ltd. a 35-year concession to manage container operations the port of Piraeus, Greece’s main port. Greece and China have strengthened ties since the 2008 Olympics. As the article comments,
Last year, the volume of trade between the two countries was euro2.9 billion ($3.7 billion) with Chinese exports making up more than 95 percent of that figure, according to data from the Hellenic-Chinese Chamber of Commerce.
The visit comes on the heels of Hu’s visit to Latin America, as posted in this CDT article.
Regarding the potential benefits of the visit, the BBC comments:
Greek officials say the visit heralds a new era in increasingly warm relations between the two countries. Greek entrepreneurs have been urged to use Mr Hu’s trip as an opportunity to boost exports to China.
