YANGON, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- The bilateral economic and trade cooperative ties between China and Myanmar has made new progress in 2007 with an incomplete Myanmar official statistics showing that China was at least able to become Myanmar's second largest trading partner and the 6th in its foreign investment line-up.

    Economic and Commercial Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Myanmar Tang Hai told Xinhua that China and Myanmar are linked by mountains and rivers with the two countries' peoples enjoying a deep paukphaw (fraternal) friendship.

    In recent years, under joint efforts, the neighborly and friendly cooperative ties between China and Myanmar continued to develop and new progress has also been made in the two countries' economic and trade cooperation.

    According to Tang Hai, China-Myanmar bilateral trade scored greater achievement in 2007 based on relatively fast growth of its volume. In the merely first three quarters of the year, the bilateral trade volume hit 1.435 billion U.S. dollars, increasing by 37.7 percent correspondingly. Of the total, China's export to Myanmar stood 1.216 billion dollars, up 45.8 percent, while its import from Myanmar took 220 million dollars, up 5.2 percent compared with the same period.

    He noted that China's exports to Myanmar are based primarily on value-added products which are mainly textile, steel and oil refined products, while its imports from Myanmar are led by primary products such as raw wood, sawn timber, natural rubber and cane products.

    Citing Myanmar official figures, Tang said from 1992 to the end of October 2007, approved contracted Chinese investment in the country amounted to 638 million dollars in 30 projects, adding that the sectors in which Chinese investment was made are mainly hydropower, oil and gas, manufacturing and mining.

    Tang emphasized that there are five key aspects in the sectors of economic and trade cooperation which are outlined as comprehensive agricultural development, natural resources exploitation, infrastructural construction, value-added assembling and human resources cooperation.

    Tang pointed out that at present, it made rapid development in China's engineering contract businesses with Myanmar which also stand as a main pattern of the two countries' economic and trade cooperation covering Myanmar's electric power, energy, industry, agriculture, infrastructural construction and others.

    He added that China has built a sets of infrastructure which have played a positive and boosting role in Myanmar's economic development, achieving the goal of getting mutual benefit or win-win and joint development.

    Counselor Tang eyes good prospects over the development of China-Myanmar economic and trade cooperative ties. He said potential development remain high. Only when joint efforts are kept on, then such cooperation will continue to maintain a rapid development trend.

    Tang also spoke highly of the forthcoming 7th China-Myanmar Border Trade Fair due to open in Jiegao of Ruili in southwestern China's Yunnan province bordering Myanmar's Muse. Viewing from the status of holding border trade fairs alternately in the two countries' border towns, he said, such activities, which are indispensable, generates influence and effectiveness.

    It can be said that such trade fairs are found to be better and better on each occasion with growing impact and result gained, he held.

    Tang particularly stressed that the border trade fairs not only raise the degree of popularity of both Myanmar and Yunnan province but also boost the Sino-Myanmar friendly relations as well as multilateral exchange and cooperation.