Chinese president in Salzburg to continue Austria visit

Chinese President Hu Jintao arrived in Salzburg on Monday evening to continue his state visit to Austria. Hu flew in from Vienna, where he had talks and meetings with his Austrian counterpart Heinz Fischer, Chancellor Werner Faymann and National Council President Barbara Prammer earlier in the day on ways to strengthen bilateral ties. Hu and Fischer witnessed the signing of a host of cooperation documents covering economy and trade, environmental protection, water conservancy, education and culture. In Salzburg, Hu is expected to visit a family farm and the residence of 18th-century composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. He will also meet local officials. Salzburg, the fourth-largest city in Austria, was the birthplace of Mozart. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Austria. Over the past 40 years, China-Austria relations have developed continuously with frequent exchanges of high-level visits, increases in bilateral trade, and more visitors traveling to each other's countries. China became Austria's biggest trading partner outside Europe in 2010, and the two-way trade rose to 6 billion U.S. dollars, up 26 percent over 2009. Last year, about 200,000 Chinese tourists visited Austria, while some 80,000 Austrians traveled to China. Following his Austria trip, Hu will fly to France to attend the summit of the Group of Twenty (G20), slated for Nov.3-4 in Cannes.