New annual cross-Strait business summit announced

A new cross-Strait business summit, which ended last week in east China's Jiangsu Province, will be held annually and become a major exchange platform, a mainland spokesperson confirmed here on Wednesday. The summit will be the fourth cross-Strait platform after the talks between the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits and the Taiwan-based Straits Exchange Foundation, the Cross-Straits Economic, Trade and Culture Forum and the Straits Forum, said Fan Liqing, of the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, at a press briefing. More than 500 entrepreneurs and economists from the Chinese mainland and Taiwan attended the summit in Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu, on Sept. 18 and 19. It was successful and produced good results, Fan said, adding that it formed a high-profile interaction channel between business people across the Strait. Companies from the mainland and Taiwan, which are all Chinese firms, should pool their resources to jointly face challenges in the international market and develop business brands for all Chinese, she said. A joint statement was issued at last week's summit calling for the cooperation in industry, research and development and the service sector as well as mutual investment. Zeng Peiyan, chairman of the mainland-based China Center for International Economic Exchanges, and Vincent C. Siew, honorary chairman of the Taiwan-based Cross-Straits Common Market Foundation were elected at the summit last week to be joint chairmen of the council for future events. The members of the council will be selected through agreed procedures. The summit will have secretariats on both sides of the Strait. It is expected to expand common understanding between business people and deepen cross-Strait economic cooperation, according to Fan.