Kuomintang (KMT) Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung said in Shanghai on Thursday that he hoped the people across the Taiwan Strait would have more economic and cultural exchange.

Shanghai was the third stop on Wu's six-day mainland tour. He met with General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee Hu Jintao in Beijing on Wednesday.

Wu reiterated his hope that people across the Strait would make concerted efforts to lay aside disputes, seek consensus and seize new opportunities so as to create a win-win situation.

He also expected faster and more convenient transport services between Taiwan and Shanghai.

Wu made the comments while meeting with Shanghai Party secretary Yu Zhengsheng.

Yu spoke highly of the contributions Taiwan businessmen had made to Shanghai. He said the Shanghai government would continue to support and facilitate their development in the city and enhance cooperation between Taiwan and Shanghai in economic, trade and other areas.

He also expressed gratitude to the Taiwan business community in Shanghai who had donated more than 300 million yuan in the wake of the 8.0-magnitude earthquake that hit Sichuan Province on May 12.

(Xinhua News Agency May 30, 2008)