"We should try to increase China's machinery and electronic imports and exports by 12 per cent each year during the 10th Five-Year Plan period (2001-05)," said Zhou Keren, vice-minister of MOFTEC.

Until then China's machinery and electronic imports and exports will account for about 50 percent of China's total volume.

Zhou said it is especially important to increase the amount of high-tech exports.

He said the export of high-tech products should increase 20 percent each year to reach US$90 billion by 2005, by which time they will make up about 50 percent of China's machinery and electronic exports.

Zhou spoke yesterday at the national conference on China's machinery and electronic imports and exports.

About 150 officials from ministries and bureaus under the State Council, machinery and electronic import and export offices, tendering institutions and Chinese exporters took part in the one-day conference.

Wei Jianguo, assistant MOFTEC minister and also director of the National Machinery and Electronic Import and Export Office, vowed to further improve the government's export-promotion policies.

"Carrying out these policies and measures is very important to accomplish the difficult goal of US$120 billion in machinery and electronic exports this year," he said.

He called for machinery and electronic exporters to diversify their markets. "While firming their hold on traditional Asian, European and American markets, companies should try to expand their exports to Africa, Latin America, the Commonwealth of Independent States, Eastern Europe and the Oceania," he said.

(China Daily 04/03/2001)