China and France yesterday signed nearly $30-billion worth of trade deals on big-ticket items ranging from aircraft to nuclear reactors.
President Hu Jintao and his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy, , presided over the signing of 20-odd agreements following talks at the Great Hall of the People.
In the single biggest agreement worth $17.4 billion, China committed to buying 160 commercial passenger jets from European plane maker Airbus. The order includes 110 A320 jets and 50 of the slightly larger A330 planes, Airbus officials said.
"China wants balanced trade with its partners and the purchases of the airplanes is a sign of how it is striving for that," ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao told reporters at a briefing.
In another major deal, France's state-owned Areva finalized a $11.9 billion contract to sell two nuclear reactors to China Guangdong Nuclear Power Corp in one of the company's largest contracts ever.
After "frank and friendly" talks, Hu and Sarkozy reached consensus on a wide range of issues and released a joint declaration on climate change, the first of its kind between China and another country.
In the document, the two countries reiterate their commitment to the aims, principles and provisions of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol.
The two sides will establish a bilateral consultation mechanism and hold talks once a year to strengthen dialogue on climate change.
They will cooperate in major technologies for energy saving, renewable energy, hydrogen energy and fuel batteries, clean coal and nuclear power for civilian use.
During the talks, Hu proposed greater cooperation on nuclear energy, aviation and aerospace, railways, finance, telecommunications, environmental protection and agriculture.
The French president also accepted Hu's invitation to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games next year.
Sarkozy is scheduled to visit Shanghai today before ending his 3 day China trip.
Questions:
1. What were the two main products that China and France traded yesterday?
2. Which province in China is Nuclear Power Corp situated in?
3. The two countries also signed a joint declaration regarding which major issue?
4 List three areas where President Hu Jintao proposed the two countries could cooperate on in the future?
Answers:
1.Airplanes and nuclear reactors.
2.Guangdong.
3.Climate change.
4.Nuclear energy, aviation and aerospace, railways, finance, telecommunications, environmental protection and agriculture.
（英语点津 Celene 编辑）
About the broadcaster:
Brendan is an Australian who has been involved in education and writing for over a decade. He has been published most recently for the Tiger Airways Inflight magazine, The Bangkok Post, The Taipei Times and Japan's Hiroshima Outside Magazine. He holds a Masters Degree in Community Development and Management and has resided in China for over 3 years.
