As Sino-Russian economic relations continue to grow, a large expo in Changchun will attract more participants from neighboring Russia, said the event's organizing committee.

"Among others, Russia's Vologda state government, the trade representative office in China, the Primorksy Krai industry and commerce association, and the Ural industry and commerce association will send representatives to the ninth China-Northeast Asia Expo," said the expo's secretariat.

"Also, such enterprises as Penza Development Group and the St Petersburg International Exhibition Center will come and showcase their products, including candies, diary products, and mineral water," it added.

The expo will kick off on Sept 6 in Changchun, capital of Jilin province in Northeast China, which is the permanent home to the international event. It is scheduled to run through Sept 11.

Founded in 2005, the annual expo is organized by the Ministry of Commerce, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Jilin provincial government.

It is the only expo in the world that links all Northeast Asian countries - China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mongolia and Russia.

Sergei Tsyplakov, a senior Russian trade delegate in China, said the event serves as an important bridge in Sino-Russian trade.

"Russia attaches great importance to the event and regional delegations have also shown strong interest. We believe that the expo will play an important role in regional economic integration and boost bilateral and multilateral cooperation."

He made the comment during the Sixth High-Level Forum on Northeast Asia Economic and Trade Cooperation, part of last year's expo.

As cooperation deepens among countries in Northeast Asia, China and Russia have been making full use of the expo to strengthen exchanges and economic ties, said local officials.

A recent example is the Hunchun-Makharino railway port that reopened in early August after a nine-year closure.

Chen Weigen, deputy governor of Jilin, noted at the ceremony to celebrate resumption of service that the port greatly reduces the time and cost of goods transported between the two countries and also stimulates two-way investment.

Russian Deputy Transport Minister Alexey Tsydenov said at the ceremony that the resumption will help promote economic development of the Russian Far East and push forward already extensive economic and trade cooperation between Russia and Northeast China, especially Jilin.

It is the only international rail line to Russia from Jilin and one of three from China. It initially started operation in 2002.

Sino-Russian trade has grown rapidly in recent years partly as a result of the expo.

Statistics show that bilateral trade hit $88.16 billion in 2012, an 11.2 percent increase from the previous year, making China Russia's largest trade partner for three consecutive years.

Also in 2012, China made $656 million in non-financial direct investment in Russia, a 116.2 percent surge from 2011.

During President Xi Jinping's visit to Russia in March, the two sides signed a joint declaration vowing to strengthen cooperation between Northeast China and the Russian Far East as well as the east Siberian region.

Experts said the initiative will further boost trade in border regions of the two countries and improve the overall quality of Sino-Russian cooperation.

lifusheng@chinadaily.com.cn

The expo has established a reputation as an important platform for boosting trade and investment in the Northeast Asia region. Provided to China Daily

A train with a full load of coal from Russia stops at a station in Jilin province. Ding Luyang / China Daily

(China Daily USA 09/05/2013 page6)