国内英语新闻:Zhejiang Province to promote cooperation with Taiwan

TAIPEI, June 16 (Xinhua) -- China's eastern Zhejiang Province and Taiwan have agreed to deepen cooperation in agriculture, tourism, finance and other sectors, according to sources with a Zhejiang delegation which concluded its eight-day visit to the island on Wednesday.

The sources said that the delegation, led by Zhejiang governor Lu Zushan, purchased 31 million yuan (4.5 million U.S. dollars) worth fruits and tea products from local farmers in Kaohsiung and Nantou.

Zhejiang provincial government also pledged to help Taiwan farmers to sell their agricultural products in Hangzhou, Ningbo, Yiwu and other cities in the province and offer them preferential treatment in participating farm produce exhibitions.

Zhejiang Province plans to increase its imports from Taiwan to about 10 billion U.S. dollars by the end of this year, from last year's 7.7 billion U.S. dollars.

After the first six Zhejiang companies which have been permitted to conduct investment in Taiwan, Zhejiang government will promote more companies to invest in the island.

Commercial banks in Zhejiang and Taiwan have also achieved cooperation agreement on financial service, insurance, futures trading and other services for small and medium-sized companies on both sides.

Zhejiang is where many Taiwan people come from.

The province is also a magnet for Taiwanese investment. The trade volume between Zhejiang and Taiwan hit 9.06 billion U.S. dollars last year, according to Lu.

Since the beginning of this year, leading officials from various municipalities and provinces - Shanghai, Hubei, Fujian, Guizhou, Qinghai, Shandong and Sichuan - and the ministries of commerce and agriculture have led delegations to Taiwan to boost cooperation and exchanges with the island.