FINLAND: Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao meets Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen as the two countries strengthen trade and diplomatic ties

Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao met with his Danish counterpart Anders Fogh Rasmussen on the sidelines of the EU-Asia summit in Helsinki on Monday (September 11). The two leaders and their respective delegation held a meeting aimed at strengthening trade diplomatic and trade ties between China and Denmark. Recently, Denmark's A.P. Moeller-Maersk announced it will buy into the 4 billion yuan ($503.4 million) development of the Guangzhou port on China's mainland, its partner COSCO Pacific. The Danish shipping and oil group has agreed to acquire a stake in the second-phase development of Guangzhou, the sixth-largest port on China's mainland. It will acquire the stake by purchasing 33.9 percent of COSCO's Nansha Company, which owns 59 percent of South China Oceangate Terminal Company. The terminal company will in turn construct and operate six berths at the port in southern China together with Maersk and Guangzhou Port Group Co., COSCO Pacific said in a statement. After the deal is completed, Maersk will indirectly hold about 20 percent in the South China Oceangate Terminal Company, COSCO said. The annual capacity of the development will be 4.2 million TEUs (20-foot-equivalent units). The first two berths are expected to be operational by the end of 2006, with all six new planned berths in operation by the end of 2007. Maersk, which owns the world's largest container shipping line, and COSCO Pacific are partners in several other major ports in China.

ITN Source | September 12, 2006

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