Egyptian Prime Minister Atef Obeid was among those attending the signing ceremony.

According to one of the two deals, the China National Arts, Crafts Import/Export Corporation will buy 250 E240 Benz cars, the newest mode for 2003, from the Egyptian-German Automotive Company by the end of this year.

Under the other, a letter of intent, the Chinese company will purchase an additional 1,000 Benz cars of the same kind from its Egyptian counterpart next year.

Egyptian Foreign Trade Minister Youssef Ghali told reporters after the signing ceremony that the signing of the two documents will help Egyptian auto makers enter Chinese auto markets, adding that Sino-Egyptian cooperation in the auto area will boost bilateral economic and trade ties.

Chinese Ambassador to Egypt Liu Xiaoming said the signing of the deals embodied China's sincerity to further promote trade balance with Egypt.

According to Chinese statistics, trade volume between the two countries reached 950 million dollars last year, an increase of 6 percent over the previous year.

China's main exports to Egypt include mechanical and electronic products, textile and garments, light industrial products and food, while Egypt mainly exports oil to China.

(People's Daily July 5, 2002)