China-US relations have, on the whole, maintained steady growth, with deepening practical cooperation in all areas. During the visit, I hope to have in-depth exchanges with President Obama and people of all sectors of American society and draw a blueprint for the future development of our relations. As economic globalization continues to deepen, new breakthroughs in industrial upgrading are in the making, and factors of production are flowing at a faster pace across borders. These have provided broader space for sub-national exchanges and cooperation between the two countries.

First, the two sides need to tap into opportunities emanating from our huge economic aggregates. A big size means tremendous business opportunities. China and the US are the world's two largest economies. This is in itself a treasure house for cooperation between our provinces and states. As the world's largest economy, the US has a huge market and a strong capability to attract foreign products, investment and talents to its shores. In China, we have a population of over 1.3 billion. The provinces of Shandong and Sichuan each have a population of around 100 million. And the six Chinese provinces and cities represented here have a combined population roughly the same as that of the US. We in China are pursuing a new type of industrialization, IT development, urbanization and agricultural modernization, and implementing a strategy of innovation-driven development. This process will generate enormous demands for products, technologies and services from abroad. In the next five years, China is expected to import 10 trillion US dollars of products and invest over 500 billion dollars overseas; and outbound visits by the Chinese people will exceed 500 million. We welcome closer cooperation between American states and their counterparts in China.

Second, the two sides need to take advantage of favorable policies of reform and development introduced by the two countries. Reform is a prevailing trend in today's world. China will stay committed to reform and opening-up, and Chinese provinces and cities are doing their part in pursuing reform and opening-up in various aspects. The US is restructuring its economy, re-industrializing and re-shoring its manufacturing sector. To ensure sustained economic recovery, it has made strategic plans to spur scientific and technological innovation and industrial upgrading. Some states have introduced measures to attract investment, which are even more favorable than what we implemented in the 1980s. These will create opportunities for cooperation. We encourage more Chinese provinces and cities to come to the US for exchanges and cooperation at a higher level to develop themselves and deliver more benefits to the local communities.

China is formulation its 13th Five-Year Plan for economic and social development. We will focus on a new round of opening-up at a higher level and speed up efforts to build and open economy. In the regard, we encourage well-placed provinces and cities to try out certain reforms measures. For example, we have established four pilot free trade zones in Shanghai, Guangdong, Tianjin and Fujian based on a management model of pre-establishment national treatment and negative list. In Beijing, we have, on a trial basis, opened up six service sectors including finance, tourism and healthcare to foreign investors. We will take effective measures to ensure coordinated development between different regions and urban and rural areas, and accelerate the development of underdeveloped regions. We will advance the "Belt and Road" Initiative at a faster pace to build platforms for different parts of China to expand their external cooperation. For instance, Xinjiang is a core area of the Silk Road economic belt and Yunnan is a gateway to the southwest under the "Belt and Road" Initiative. The US and other countries are welcome to actively participate in the "Belt and Road" Initiative. All these measures will create opportunities for China-US sub-national cooperation.

Third, the two sides need to unlock more local potentials for complementary cooperation. The key to successful cooperation is to leverage our respective strengths. Many areas in China and the US boast unique local strengths, which are highly complementary. We need to make full use of these strengths in our cooperation. Just as a Chinese saying goes, "When eight immortals crossed the sea, each showed their own magic." Take agricultural cooperation as an example. Iowa is known as the "granary of the US" and Oregon is also a major agricultural producer. These two states can strengthen their cooperation with big agricultural producers like Shaanxi, Hebei and Heilongjiang provinces. California's HP has set up a global computer production center in Chongqing, where further cooperation in IT industry and be expected. Michigan, as the largest motor vehicles producer of the US, can also explore cooperation with China. In fact, Michigan may start with the six Chinese provinces and cities present today, as they all have a booming car industry. And the two sides can explore cooperation in a third market.