China-Argentina ties have room to grow, say experts

BUENOS AIRES - China is one of Argentina's key trade partners and there is room for the bilateral relationship to further grow, Argentine officials and political observers said on Wednesday.

At a seminar titled "Business with the World" organized here by the country's leading daily newspaper La Nacion, participants said the two countries' trade ties have huge growth potential.

Horacio Reyser, the secretary of International Economic Affairs at the Foreign Ministry, said Argentina's exports to the Asian giant were still "low" and could be increased.

"China is one of our main trade partners and exports could be twice, three or four times larger than they are today," said Reyser.

Ties with China, he said, can be expanded in several aspects -- finance, economy and politics.

"We have a good relationship with China. There are dialogues, there is an agenda and steps are being taken in investment and financing," he said.

In 2016, the bilateral trade volume reached $12.32 billion, just two years after the two countries established a comprehensive strategic partnership.

Fernando Vilella, a professor of agronomy at the University of Buenos Aires (UBA), said China plays an important role in Argentina's exports."It is our biggest buyer of meat and it will continue to be," said the academic.

Vilella, who directs the agribusiness and food program at the UBA, said Argentina should also seize the opportunities created by China's Road and Belt Initiative.

Proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative aims to build trade and infrastructure networks connecting Asia with Europe and Africa along the ancient Silk Road routes. It comprises the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.