Africans In China

China has funded a car plant in Angola. Angola is planning to produce cars from next month onwards after this funded venture. The technology will be that from Japan’s Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. This was announced by the Dy. GM of the China International Fund.

Incidentally CSV Automovel – Angola will be the first car plant in the country. This has given rise to many job opportunities. It has been a $30 million investment. With this the company will be able to produce pick up vans, SUVs, small and compact cars and buses. According to Kelvin Kwan, thse will be produced in the factory that is located on the outskirts of Luanda.

They are planning to aim at the initial out of 10,000 vehicles. But this will be increased to 30,000 in the near future or 3 years according to the demand.

According to Kwan, “We have done our market research and expect the plant to be producing cars at full capacity by 2012.” He also added that the engines of the vehicles will be from Nissan.

Angola had been a victim of 27 year old civil war that ended in 2002. Now the country wants to enhance its economy and the industrial sector so as to create jobs and income for its people. The county’s population is 16.5 million. It also wants to diversify from its traditional oil and diamond reliant economy.

Surprisingly, this South African nation equals Nigeria for being Africa’s biggest oil producer. Also it is world’s top most diamond exporter.

In Angola most of the cars used for domestic purpose were either imported from Asia or the United States by the sea route. The land route taken was via Namibia on the southern border of Angola. But now this will be reduced since there will be an automatic increase in the demand for local products which will be cheap as compared to the imported cars.

Apart from this China has also given $5 billion grants to Angola to help in its oil-backed loans. This has helped the country to build its infrastructure.

(chinafrica.asia)

LUANDA,  (Reuters) - Angola plans to begin producing cars next month through a venture funded by a Chinese fund and based on technology from Japan’s Nissan Motor Co (7201.T: Quote, Profile,Research), the deputy general manager of the China International Fund said.

CSG Automovel-Angola will be the country’s first car plant. The $30 million investment will produce pick-ups, SUVs, compact cars and buses at a factory on the outskirts of Luanda, Kelvin Kwan told journalists on Wednesday.

Initial annual capacity will be 10,000 vehicles but output is expected to rise to 30 000 in three years.

“We have done our market research and expect the plant to be producing (cars) at full capacity by 2012,” said Kwan, adding that the vehicles will be powered by Nissan engines.

Rebuilding after a devastating 27-year civil war that ended in 2002, Angola is keen to beef up its industrial sector as part of an effort to create jobs for its 16,5 million people and diversify oil-and-diamond dependent economy.

The southwestern African nation rivals Nigeria as Africa’s largest oil producer and is one of the world’s top diamond exporters.

Most of the estimated 1.1 million cars used in Angola are imported by sea from Asia and the United States; or by land via Angola’s southern border with Namibia.

The car factory at Viana, about 30 kilometres east of Luanda, is a sign of energy-hungry China’s growing presence and influence in Africa.

China’s trade with Africa has shot up 10-fold since 2000, soaring 45 percent to nearly $107 billion last year alone.

China has also granted over $5 billion in oil-backed loans to Angola since the end of the civil war to help rebuild roads, bridges and ailing communications.

(Reporting by Henrique Almeida; editing by Simon Jessop)

By John Duce

(Bloomberg) — China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. and Cnooc Ltd., the nation’s second- and third-largest oil producers, rose in Hong Kong trading after they agreed to buy a $1.3 billion stake in an Angolan offshore oil block.

Cnooc gained 4.5 percent, the most since July 14, to close at HK$10.22. China Petroleum, also known as Sinopec, rose 1.7 percent to HK$6.45, while the Hang Seng index climbed 3.7 percent.

Sinopec and Cnooc agreed to purchase a 20 percent stake in Angola’s deepwater Block 32 from Marathon Oil Corp., the companies said July 17. China is buying energy and commodity assets in Africa and Central Asia to avoid the political opposition that has caused planned acquisitions in the U.S. and Australia to fail. Cnooc Chairman Fu Chengyu said in April rising protectionism is making overseas takeovers difficult.

“Chinese oil companies are interested in Africa because there aren’t some of the political restrictions in buying assets that exist in other countries in the world,” said Grace Liu, an analyst at Guotai Junan Securities in Hong Kong. “Countries like Angola have quite rich oil resources and are open to Chinese development.”

Opposition to Chinese investment helped blocked Cnooc’s $18.5 billion bid for El Segundo, California-based Unocal Corp. and Haier Group Corp.’s offer for U.S. appliance maker Maytag Corp. in 2005. Aluminum Corp. of China failed in a plan to invest $19.5 billion in Rio Tinto Group.

Nigeria, Kenya

Cnooc has interests in African oilfields in Nigeria, Kenya and Equatorial Guinea, according to its 2008 annual report.

Chinese companies have spent $12.6 billion on oil assets overseas since December, including in Singapore, Syria and Kazakhstan. China Petroleum agreed last month to buy Geneva- based Addax Petroleum Corp. for $7.2 billion, giving the Chinese company access to reserves in Iraq’s Kurdistan and West Africa.

The Angolan purchase comes after the Chinese government warned its citizens based in Algeria, northern Africa, to heighten security after an al-Qaeda-linked group vowed to avenge Muslim Uighurs killed during this month’s riots in Xinjiang province. The clashes between Muslim Uighurs and Han Chinese in Urumqi, the capital of China’s westernmost Xinjiang province, had left 192 people dead.

China’s oil consumption doubled in the last decade, rising to 8 million barrels a day last year from 4.2 million barrels in 1998, according to the BP Statistical Review. The world’s fastest-growing major economy imported 3.6 million barrels of oil a day last year, meeting about 45 percent of its needs.

Financial Impact

The impact of the Marathon Oil deal on Cnooc and Sinopec’s financial performance is unclear as the field is still under exploration, said Gordon Kwan, an analyst at Mirae Asset Securities in Hong Kong, in e-mailed comments. “The Angolan oil block has already yielded 12 discoveries” and “until more appraisal and development drilling are conducted, it is difficult to gauge the production and reserves potential,” he said.

The field, 150 kilometers off the African nation’s coast, is operated by Total SA of France, which owns a 30 percent stake. Sonangol SA, Angola’s state-owned oil company, owns 20 percent, Cnooc said on July 17. Marathon, the fourth-largest U.S. oil company, will keep a 10 percent interest in the project.

“This suggests to us that Marathon still believes that the block could hold further potential long-term upside,” Kwan said.

To contact the reporter on this story: John Duce in Hong Kong at Jduce1@bloomberg.net

Two Chinese oil firms, with a developing interest in Africa, have agreed to purchase a 20% stake in an Angolan offshore oil block, located 150 kilometres off of the African nation’s coastline.

China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation has joined together in a 50/50 joint venture with China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), signing an agreement worth $1.3 billion to acquire the stake in deepwater Block 32 from Marathon Oil Corporation.

The nation’s second and third largest producers respectively are moving to build up their portfolio of energy and commodity assets in Africa and Central Asia to avoid the political opposition that has caused planned acquisitions in the U.S. and Australia to fall through. Energy-hungry China is hoping to secure future oil supplies for its rapidly growing economy.

CNOOC Chairman Fu Chengyu said back in April that rising protectionism was making overseas takeovers difficult for China, and this has proven to be the case.

Opposition to Chinese investment helped block CNOOC’s $18.5 billion bid for El Segundo, California-based Unocal Corporation, and Haier Group Corporation’s offer for U.S. appliance maker Maytag Corporation, back in 2005. Aluminum Corporation of China also failed recently in a plan to invest $19.5 billion in Rio Tinto Group.

Upon successful completion – which is expected by the end of the year –the Block 32 project is expected to provide a meaningful contribution to CNOOC’s earnings by the year 2015. However it is the guaranteed supply of oil in the long-term that is more important to the state-owned company and the nation at large.

Analysts at Goldman Sachs reported that the oil field has “a significant resource base with estimated recoverable light crude oil reserves of 1.5 billion barrels.

“The $1.3 billion consideration compares with our valuation of $1.4 billion to $1.65 billion and Marathon’s publicly disclosed offer of $1.8 billion to $2.0 billion,” the report continued. The broker values the recoverable reserves at $4.30 a barrel.

Under the agreement Houston-based Marathon Oil will continue to hold a 10% stake in the 1,965 square-mile block. The field, which has had 12 previously announced discoveries, is currently operated by French energy giant Total.

The deal in Angola, which is a major supplier of crude to China, prices the African-nation’s assets significantly cheaper than Marathon had originally hoped. Marathon valued the stake at $2 billion.

CNOOC now has a portfolio spanning African oilfields in Nigeria, Angola, Kenya and Equatorial Guinea.

Grace Liu, analyst at Guotai Junan Securities, Hong Kong, said: “Chinese oil companies are interested in Africa because there aren’t some of the political restrictions in buying assets that exist in other countries in the world.

“Countries like Angola have quite rich oil resources and are open to Chinese development,” added Liu.

China’s oil demand has accelerated rapidly over the last decade, doublings its consumption to 8 million barrels per day (bpd) for 2008, up from 4.2 million bpd in 1998 – according to the BP Statistical Review.

(oilvoice.com)

CNOOC and Sinopec have agreed to buy a 20 per cent stake in a subsea oil field off Angola for $1.3bn from Marathon of the US, as China continues to pursue its sometimes chequered efforts to buy up overseas energy and mining assets.

The Chinese energy companies said that they would form a 50-50 venture to buy the stake in an area known as block 32, which has already yielded 12 discoveries. Marathon will retain a 10 per cent working interest in the block

Chinese companies have been quietly buying up sources of commodities that will be needed to fuel the country’s economic growth. Sinopec recently moved into the booming oil frontier of Iraqi Kurdistan by agreeing a C$8.3bn (US$7.2bn) takeover of Addax Petroleum, an independent oil company based in Canada. Earlier this month, China Investment Corporation, the country’s $200bn sovereign wealth fund, agreed to pay C$1.74bn for a 17.2 per cent stake in Teck Resources, a Canadian zinc and copper miner.

However, the country’s pursuit of resources was dealt a blow when Rio Tinto, the Anglo-Australian mining company, rejected Chinalco’s $19.5bn bid for part of the company.

That deal, which ultimately foundered for market reasons, also faced economic, political and shareholder opposition, reflecting fears over the consequences of giving China direct access to big supplies of natural resources.

Concern has risen over Chinese attempts to gain greater power over natural resources since Beijing has detained four employees of Rio, including one Australian citizen, in connection with global iron ore contract pricing negotiations.

The deal in Angola, already a big supplier of crude to China, prices the African assets more cheaply than Marathon had originally hoped. Marathon had tried to sell the stake for up to $2bn, people close to the deal said at the time. Other partners in block 32 – Total of France with a 30 per cent stake; Sonangol, the Angola state-owned company, with 20 per cent; ExxonMobil with 15 per cent and Galp of Portugal with 5 per cent – have rights of first refusal over the sale. Any of those companies could buy the 20 per cent stake at the price being offered by the Chinese.

Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2009

(ft.com)

LUANDA (AFP) — In the lobby bar of one of Luanda’s few decent hotels, suited businessmen sit in deep leather armchairs waiting for a meeting in the oil-rich country which could change their fortunes.

“Angola is one of the last great emerging market opportunities,” one European man told AFP between sips of whisky.

“I don’t care about the logistical problems as long as the solutions and rewards are there — I’m in this for the long term to make money.”

Thanks to high oil prices and a peacetime construction frenzy, Angola has enjoyed annual double-digit growth since a 27-year civil war ended in 2002 to become one of the world’s fastest growing economies.

Growth is set to slow this year, but interest from international investors has not abated with a recent flurry of high profile trade delegations, all hoping to get a piece of the action.

The government’s response to falling commodity prices, which threaten public spending aimed at Angola’s poor majority, is diversification into areas such as agriculture and manufacturing.

Until now, Angola’s main foreign players have been Brazilian and Portuguese firms, and Chinese companies helped along by close ties and credit lines believed to exceed five billion dollars.

But along with visits from the United States, France and South Korea in the past month, there have also been business forums in Rome and Cairo and state visits by President Jose Eduardo dos Santos to Germany and Portugal.

Last week a trade agreement was signed with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Washington.

Among the recent American delegation was Delta Air Lines which hopes to launch the first direct scheduled flight from the United States to Luanda in September.

“There’s no question, Angola is a very strong market and there is a lot of potential,” the airline’s government affairs advisor Scott Yohe told AFP.

“The amount of time it takes to get to Angola from the US, via Europe or via South Africa, has an impact on trade and the new flight will definitely be a catalyst for investment.”

Dubai-based Emirates starts flying three times a week from Luanda to Dubai in August.

“Angola is a country which is really moving,” explained Nigel Page, senior vice president of Emirates in Americas and Africa.

“We predict that there will be a lot of business exchanges between Luanda and Dubai and this route will channel more companies into Angola from the east.”

There is already plenty of Asian investment in Angola, particularly from China which holds a number of key construction contracts, including four 2010 Africa Cup of Nations football stadiums.

China’s interest in Angola has aroused concern in the west, especially as a number of the loans have been oil backed, but Alex Vines, of the London-based think tank Chatham House, believes the Sino-Angolan relationship may be waning.

“From a geo-strategic point of view, Angola wants to woo lots of different investment, not just from China,” he told AFP.

“And that’s why we’ve seen Dos Santos making these high profile visits to Europe and these other trade trips being invited to Angola.”

Despite predicting a three-percent contraction in 2009, World Bank economist Ricardo Gazel said: “Angola’s economy is still in a much better position than most and medium and long term, the prospects are very good.

“There is a lot of investment interest, particularly in the non-petroleum sector which is good for diversifying the economy and for the economy as a whole.”

For businesses hoping to break into the Angolan market however, it’s not easy and good contacts go a long way.

The World Bank’s Doing Business Report ranks Angola as one of the hardest places to set up a company with 68 days needed to start a business, although this has halved since 2008.

But, big on capital if low on know-how, Angola has been spreading the word about investment opportunities and it seems the world is listening.

Cape Town, South Africa, – The deepening international financial crisis and increasing uncertainty in international markets, the price of oil and in credit markets will strengthen the economic relationship between Angola and China, researcher Lucy Corkin concluded in a periodical publication published by Stellenbosch University, South Africa.

Noting a visit to China by Angolan President José Eduardo dos Santos to China, the second in a five month period, Corkin said that Angola was increasingly looking to China as a source fo economic stability.

“Despite policies outlined in Luanda to diversify the Angolan economy and its economic partners, following global financial uncertainty, China is considered to be a guarantee for difficult times. Especially when Angola’s access to foreign capital is limited,” said Corkin, a researcher at the Asia-Africa Centre at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), of the University of London.

In the “China Monitor” publication of the Centre for Chinese Studies of Stellenbosch University – the latest edition of which is themed “Chinese Involvement in Angola: Mutually Beneficial Commercial Pragmatism?” Corkin analysed the possible effects of the current economic crisis on relations between Angola and China, concluding that Beijing would know how to take advantage of the crisis, at least in relation to Angola.

The researcher said that the global economic crisis had made the Angolan state’s financial position weaker, particularly because the drop in oil prices had reduced the influx of foreign currencies, investment, revenue and capital. The adoption by Western oil companies of a more conservative risk profile in terms of oil investments had also reduced Angola’s room for manoeuvre, Corkin said.

“China thus has more trump cards, as one of the few buyers with capacity to increase oil imports. As well as this, Chian’s considerable incvolvement in funding Angola’s government projects puts Beijing in a stronger position, particularly in the current economic climate and because the national reconstruction project was seens as one of the most important political priorities,” she added.

“With oil at high prices it was easy to play between the interests of the new arrivals [China] against more traditional investors such as Brazil and Portugal, but with funding drying up over the last six months, the Angolan government’s options have also dried up,” said Corkin.

The author also cited World Bank official as saying that China may already have granted Angola funding that had not been announced of up to US$8 billion. (macauhub)

Cuito, Angola, – The Public Works Director of Bié province in Angola, João Marques Banco said Tuesday in Cuito that over 1,000 kilometres of roads would be rebuilt in the province over the next few years.

Speaking to Angolan news agency Angop, Marques Banco noted that after the refurbishment of roads, a further 1,500 kilometres of secondary and tertiary roads would be rebuilt, in a project co-funded by municipal authorities and the Local Management fund.

Marques Banco said he was satisfied with the road reconstruction programme and noted that asphalting of the Cuito-Chitembo road was progressing well and that base and sub-base work had been completed on the Cuito-Andulo and Calussinga section (Kwanza Sul).

He said that work was going well on the Andulo-Nharea contract, in the hands of Chinese company Sinohydro.

He also added that on the 78-kilometre Kuito-Kamacupa road, in the hands of the Clamar company, work was also progressing satisfactorily.

The road reconstruction programme in Bié province involves constrution companies, Empresa de Terraplenagem e Pavimentações (Paviterra), Clamar, Monte Adriano and Sinohydro, amongst others. (macauhub)

Luanda – The African Union is seeking a consensus on the creation of a Union’s Government, said in Luanda the director for Africa and Middle East of the Angolan Foreign Ministry, Nelson Cosme.

Speaking to Angop on the occasion of the Africa’s Day, May 25, the official said a debate is underway, seeking a consensus, in view of existing divergences.

He said there are positions defending an agreement or ratification from states for the transformation of a supra-national structure.

According to the official, there are indications that the process is moving towards an intergovernmental institution, adding that the debate on the issue is still going on.

Nelso Cosme characterised the activity of the continental over three decades as comprising two stages.

He mentioned that the political purpose – the constitution of the Organisation of African Unity (OUA) was accomplished, as well as the liberation of the peoples from colonial rule and attainment of their independences, of which the Western Sahara is left.

To him, there is a component concerning the economic integration and the role the continental institution can play in the prevention and management of conflicts.

The diplomat stated that these two elements have been essential to the current structure of the organisation that is the African Union Commission, with specific programmes to respond to the economic matters and adoption of an architecture capable of responding for the management and prevention of conflicts, namely with the creation of the Peace and Security Council and other structures that did not exist in the past.

Commenting on coup d’Etats in the continent, the Foreign Ministry’s Africa and Middle East director, said the African Union should not accept this way of winning power.

He recalled that in the light of the dispositions contained in the Lome and Alger accords, institutionalised later by the AU, this purpose has been fulfilled, mentioning the example of Mauritania, Guinea Conakry and others whose states ceased to have a seat within the organisation, after they were found to have used violence to win power.

The OAU was created on May 25 1963, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on an initiative by the Ethiopian emperor, Hailé Selassié, through the signing of its constitution by representatives of 32 Governments of African independent countries.

The continental organisation was replaced by the African Union on July 9, 2002.
(portalangop.co.ao)

Luanda, Angola, 15 May – Angola was China’s largest trading partner in Africa in 2008, with trade of US$25.3 billion, after over US$22 billion in 2007, Jornal de Angola reported.

Bilateral trade has seen significant growth, according to an assessment by the Permanent Commission of the Council of Ministers, on summarising its trade with the Asian giant.

Angola exports crude oil to China, and is its biggest African supplier of the product, diamonds and scrap metal and imports food, machinery, equipment, electronic devices, clothing and footwear.

Exports of oil, diamonds and scrap metal to China reached an approximate value of US$7 billion between 2004 and 2006. (macauhub)

Beijing – The Angolan ambassador to China, João Manuel Bernardo, Friday last week, symbolically inaugurated in Beijing the premises of the Defence Chancellery.

The diplomat on the occasion considered the opening of the Defence Chancellery as a very important landmark in the reinforcement of cooperation existing between Angola and China.

João Manuel Bernardo also expressed the wish for a successful cooperation, having highlighted the effort by everyone directly and indirectly involved.

The Defence Chancellery with the Angola Embassy in China started its official functions on February 18, but it was operating from a transitional premises.

The defence attache with the Angolan embassy in China, brig. Barbosa Epalanga, has since then been carrying out several activities promoted by the Ministry of National Defence of the People’s Republic of China, within the framework of the Association of Defence Attaches based in Beijing.

Brig. Barbosa Epalanga, 48, married and father of four, until his nomination, held the post of chief of Department of International Relations of the National Department of Defence Policy of the Ministry of National Defence (MINDEN).

The ceremony of inauguration of the Angolan Defence Chancellery in Beijing was witnessed by officials of the Angolan embassy in the People’s Republic of China.

(portalangop.co.ao)

Luena, Angola, 6 May – Reconstruction and extension work on Luena airport, in Angola’s Moxico province, is due to re-start this week after being halted due to the rainy season, the project’s inspector told Angolan news agency Angop.

Manuel Catraio said that Chinese company Sinohydro Corp. had been making up cement and gravel to lay the last 300 metres of the runway.

After this phase, teh inspector said, the final layer of cement would be laid on the more than 3000 metres of the runway’s length and 45 metre width.

According to Catraio, the Chinese company expects to finish work on the runway in June and then move on to working on access roads and water draining, the airport apron, lighting and fencing the entire facility.

Over 2,000 metres of the runway have so far been concluded, and the project, which began in 2007, is due to be finished in September/October. (macauhub)

Chinese group CITIC International Contracting wants to widen its investments in Angola in the areas of petroleum, mining and agriculture - the group’s vice president Wang Jiang Sheng said in Luanda on Wednesday.
Wang  said that the group had been involved since last August, in a construction project to build 20,000 apartments in the town of Kilamba Kiaxi in the Angolan capital of Luanda, after meeting with the acting speaker of Angolan National Assembly, João Lourenço.
The project is said to be worth 3.5 billion US dollars.
Wang Jiangsheng added that CITIC International Contracting group was one of the biggest in China and it would also be involved in the construction of infrastructures such as roads in Angola.

(macaudailytimesnews.com)

Angola Chamber of Commerce and Industry head António dos Santos and Association of Macau Small and Medium Enterprises head Stanley Au signed a co-operation protocol on Friday.
At the end of the ceremony Dos Santos said his group was taking one more step to work closely with their counterparts in developing trade and business.
Dos Santos added that most companies are small- to medium-sized in Macau, so the agreement represents another way to meet the current needs of Angolan entrepreneurs seeking to enter international markets.
The Chinese government donated five million yuan to Angola. Vice minister of Trade Jiang Zengwei said the authorities were satisfied with the co-operation established with Angola and the active role of Chinese companies reconstructing the country.
Despite the global financial crisis, he stressed the need to invest more efforts in both countries so obstacles could be “overcome” as they arise.
He added that the visit head of state José Eduardo dos Santos made to China last year contributed to further strengthening the friendship ties between the two countries.
Jiang also considered the conclusion of the agreement of reciprocal protection of investments signed earlier between both countries important, he said.
Funds were formally delivered on Friday through the signing of confirmation letters between Jiang and Angolan deputy foreign minister Exalgina Gamboa at the end of the China-Angola Intergovernmental Bilateral Commission in Luanda.
The Angolan vice minister said the government continues to honour its commitments and is committed to continuing program reforms, while calling for greater rigour in managing public expenses.

(macaudailytimesnews.com)

Luanda – The Angolan deputy minister of Foreign Affairs, Exalgina Gamboa, said Friday in Luanda that the country’s authorities received the announcement that China is ready to increase the financial cooperation, through the granting of one more loan.

Exalgina Gamboa was speaking at the opening of the 4th session of the Angola-China Bilateral Commission.

According to the deputy minister, the Chinese authorities are also ready to grant an additional non-refundable loan which, she added, confirms the Asian nation’s readiness to increase the volume of financial cooperation and expand existing technical cooperation programmes.

The official stated that the Angolan Government will continue honouring its commitments and is engage in continuing the programme of institutional reforms, while demanding a stricter management of the public expenditures.

As she said, measures to maintain the macro-economic stability and positive economic growth rates are being adopted.

According to her, the environment of comprehension and openness around the works of preparation of the session show that the two countries are on good path towards the continued strengthening of the programmes underway, and relaunch of new areas of
cooperation.

She reaffirmed the Angolan authorities political will to negotiate new cooperation accords in the domains of agriculture, industry, science and technology, environment and social assistance.

In his turn, the Chine minister of Commerce, Jiang Zengwei, said that his country’s authorities are happy with the trend the cooperation with Angola is taking and the active role the Chinese firms are playing in the national reconstruction process.

In view of the world financial crisis, the Chinese official stressed the need for a combination of effort between the two countries.

Jiang Zengwei added that the visit Angolan head of State, José Eduardo dos Santos, paid to China, in December 2008, contributed to further strengthen the friendship between the two countries.

However, the Chinese minister spoke of the need for the two countries to finalise a reciprocal investment protection accord.

(portalangop.co.ao)

Luanda – The relations between China and Angola are excellent, said Thursday in Luanda the Chinese ambassador to Angola, Zhang Bolun.

Speaking to Angop, the diplomat said the relations gained a momentum after the war in Angola in 2002, thanks to a good understanding, comprehension and friendship between the two countries and peoples.

In the political sphere, the ambassador mentioned the fact that Angolan head of State, Jose Eduardo dos Santos, paid four State visits to China which, according to him, show the proximity between the two states.

Zhang Bolun stated that in 2008, Angola turned out to be the first commercial partner of China in Africa, with a trade of about Usd 25 billion.

In the said year, the source added, the trade balance favoured Angola, as China imported huge amounts of oil (31 million tons), against three million worth of imports from the Asian nation, comprising mainly machinery, construction materials and other assorted goods.

The diplomat said, under the framework accord with Angola, China granted credits of Usd 4.5 billion, to support the national reconstruction effort, especially in the repair of electrical networks, schools, hospitals, roads, railways and other infrastructures.

The ambassador said that currently, the process is being expanded to such areas as construction of airport, telecommunication and construction of economic houses.

He informed that about 50 big Chinese companies are currently operating in Angola, announcing that several smaller ones are based in the country, amounting to about 100 firms.

According to the official, more than 50,000 Chinese workers are currently in Angola.

On the other hand, the diplomat commended the Angolan authorities’ effort in keeping the growth pace, in addition to adopting measures to reduce the impact of the world financial crisis.

He said China is ready to cooperate in all areas and hopes to play a relevant role in the development of agriculture.

The ambassador stressed that Angola has excellent conditions for the production of rice, wheat, cotton, vegetables, fruits and other crops, the reason why Chinese companies are making surveys for the establishment of agro-industrial companies to address the food problem in the country very soon.

Zhang Bolun revealed that about 10,400 Angolans applied for visas to travel to China last year.

Meanwhile, the diplomat said that the 4th session of the Angola-China Bilateral Commission, set for Friday in Luanda, will analyse and strengthen the relations of friendship and cooperation between the two countries.

The meeting will also assess the work so far done under the credit line granted by China and consider other steps.

(portalangop.co.ao)

Luanda - The fourth session of Angola-China Inter-governmental Bilateral Commission will gather next Friday in Luanda, Angop learnt on Tuesday.
According to a communiqué issued by the Foreign Affair Ministry, the meeting will be chaired by the Angolan deputy minister of Foreign Affairs, Exalgina Gâmboa and by Chinese vice-minister of Trade, Jiang Zengwei.
During the meeting, due to take place at the amphitheatre of Foreign Affairs Ministry, there will be carried out the assessment of the bilateral cooperation between the two countries and drafted future actions for the 2009-2010 period.
The press release adds that the Chinese delegation will arrive in the country on Thursday, coming from Johannesburg, South Africa.
In Angola, the Chinese government‘s official will hold courtesy meetings with notable local entities, stresses the note.

(portalangop.co.ao)

Macau,  – China’s Deputy Trade Minister, Jiang Zengwei, left on Monday for a trip to Mozambique, Angola and Portugal to strengthen economic and trade relations between China and the three Portuguese-speaking countries.

In statements made to Portuguese news agency, Lusa, Rita Santos, Coordinator of the Supporting Office to the Permanent Secretariat of the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, said that a “successful visit” was expected and stressed that “for the first time, a visit by an official of the Chinese Trade Ministry is supported by the logistical platform of Macau.”

“Yet it also has the support of businesspeople from Macau who have, over recent years, maintained frequent contact with these countries, promoting business and investment,” said Santos.

Macau has been the link between China and the Portuguese-speaking world since 2003, hosting not only the permanent secretariat of the Forum, but also the ministerial meeting which takes place every three years.

The political and business delegation which left for Mozambique, Angola and Portugal includes a dozen Chinese businesspeople, as well as nine from Macau.

The delegation will remain in Mozambique until 26 March from where a part of the delegation will head for Lisbon and the other, led by Jiang Zengwei, will visit Angola and remain in Luanda until 28 March.

The latest available data – collected between January and October – indicate that trade between China and the Portuguese-speaking world totalled US$68.07 billion, an increase of 89.5 percent which is very favourable to the Portuguese-speaking world given that the eight countries imported products worth US$21.12 billion and sold products worth US$46.94 billion. (macauhub)

An economic and trade delegation from the mainland government led by Deputy Minister of Trade  Jiang Zengwei, left yesterday for an official visit to Mozambique, Angola and Portugal, accompanied by a business delegation of the interior and an official delegation from Macau. The trip aims to strengthen economic and trade relations between China and Portuguese-speaking countries.
Another business delegation of representatives of Macau that have cooperative relations with Portuguese-speaking countries will visit Mozambique and Portugal to attend the Meeting of China and Mozambique Entrepreneurs and at the same time, visit Mozambican and Portuguese companies, as well as local Chinese companies.
This visit aims to strengthen the exchange and economic cooperation and bilateral trade between the Mainland, Macau and Portuguese-speaking countries, placing Macau as a platform for economic and commercial services.
Active participation in economic and trade cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries is important in light of the international financial crisis.
Organizers of this mission hope it will help create more business opportunities and develop new cooperative projects for investment.
The Coordinator of the Supporting Office to Forum Permanent Secretariat for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries of Macau, Rita Santos and Deputy Director of the Macau Economic Services, Sou Tim Peng, will accompany the visit and provide logistical support in organising the activities regarding the official and business delegations from the mainland and Macau.
The delegations from the mainland and Macau are composed of a total of 38 people.

(macaudailytimesnews.com)

Malanje, Angola, – Businesspeople associated to state Chinese investment group CITIC plan to invest in the Angolan Province of Malanje in the agri-livestock and industrial sectors, Angolan news agency Angop reported.

Angop said that the delegation made up of businesspeople and officials from the CITIC and the China Development Bank, which funds projects, had met Monday in the city of Malanje with provincial officials in order to obtain information about the province’s potential, including its water resources, arable land, soil fertility and most important crops.

The meeting served for the Chinese delegation to assess the possibility of becoming involved in agriculture and the manufacturing industries.

The province’s agricultural director, João Manuel noted the Kassanje and Malanje plateau areas, along with the Songo region as being the main agricultural production areas, despite their specific characteristics, for producing rice, cotton and other crops.

The director of the evaluation department for the China Development Bank, Meng Ya Ping, said that investments would also involve building infrastructures, adding that the map that was presented showed fertile land in the province.

Following the meeting, the Chinese delegation travelled to the Pungo-a-Dondo plantation (Kapanda) to verify levels of maize production and processing, as well as the experimental production of soy, rice, peanuts and beans in order to have an idea of the fertility levels of the province’s land.

(macauhub)