Georgian Finance Minister, Chinese Vice Premier agree to boost trade, investment

The Chinese Government will encourage Chinese companies to invest in Georgia.

This agreement was reached as Georgian Vice Prime Minister, Finance Minister Dimitry Kumsishvili met with Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang in the city of Hefei in China.

Kumsishvili said that large Chinese investments in Georgia are important as they create new jobs in the country and also make it possible to make full use of opportunities provided under the recently signed Georgia-China Free Trade Agreement.

"We asked the Chinese side to launch a new project under the One Belt – One Road initiative to support Chinese private companies that will be represented in Georgia,” Kumrishvili said.

He named the Chinese company, the Hualing Group, as a successful example of such a collaboration between Georgia and China. The Hualing Group was named the largest investor in Georgia in 2015, with almost $600 million in USD investment capital.

The pair also discussed the memorandum Kumsishvili signed in Beijing three days ago with Shanghai’s largest corporation, CEFC. Under the memorandum, a Chinese bank with $1 billion capital will open in Georgia to support Chinese companies do business in Georgia.

The CEFC will be the second Chinese company after the Hualing Group to open a Free Industrial Zone in Georgia in the port town of Poti.

Kumsishvili and Yang discussed trade issues as well and agreed that the two states will work to increase trade turnover between Georgia and China to $1 billion.

Georgia is the only country in the region that has a Free Trade Agreement with China. Negotiations on this matter lasted for seven months and was concluded on May 13 when the two states signed the agreement.
(Agenda.ge)