Honorable Chairman Lee Hee-Beom,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Dear friends,

It is a great pleasure to meet friends, both old and new, from the ROK business community. I thank you for the kind invitation and gracious hospitality. I also wish to take this opportunity to send my warm greetings to the business communities of both countries for your contribution to China-ROK friendship and cooperation over the years!

The main purpose of my visit here is to consolidate common ground, enhance friendship, promote cooperation and create a new situation in China-ROK relations through candid and in-depth exchange of views with the ROK side. During this visit, ROK leaders and I reached a number of new and important common understanding. Both sides agreed to move China-ROK relations forward by strengthening political mutual trust, deepening mutually beneficial cooperation, encouraging people-to-people and cultural exchanges, safeguarding regional peace and stability and jointly responding to regional and global issues. The visit has achieved results in diverse fields. I am confident that with the concerted efforts of both sides, China-ROK relations will have an even better future.

As an important dimension of China-ROK relations, business cooperation has played an important role in boosting bilateral ties. Two-way trade reached almost $160 billion in 2007, up 32 times from the level at the beginning of our diplomatic relations. To date, total mutual investment has exceeded $41 billion, almost a 90-fold increase from the first year of diplomatic relations. All these are attributable to the concerted efforts of both sides and the active contribution you have made. I wish to take this opportunity to extend my sincere thanks to all of you!

China and the ROK, blessed with geographical proximity and affinity, have mutually complementary economies. The growth of business cooperation enjoys favorable natural and cultural conditions. In recent years, mechanisms of economic cooperation between the two countries have been improving, two-way trade and investment are becoming more dynamic, and bilateral cooperation has grown in both breadth and depth. The establishment of China-ROK strategic and cooperative partnership opens up new opportunities and broader prospects for deepening bilateral business cooperation.

At the same time, we must not lose sight of the many challenges facing China-ROK business cooperation in the complex and ever-changing global economic environment. I note in particular the recent surge of uncertainties and factors of instability in the world economy, as evidenced by lingering volatility in the financial market, high oil and food prices, rising prices of raw materials, greater inflationary pressure on all economies and slowdown in world economic growth. They affect the economic development of China and the ROK and our business cooperation. This makes it imperative for China and the ROK to step up coordination and cooperation, make full use of the opportunities and properly address challenges. We may focus our efforts in the following areas:

First, promote cooperation in key areas. Strong economic complementarity is our biggest asset in conducting business cooperation. China is a vast market and a fast growing economy. The ROK has rich experience in the industrial application of technologies and corporate management. We need to bring our respective strengths into full play, expand exchanges and cooperation in key areas such as communications, financial services, energy, logistics and environmental protection, identify new areas of bilateral cooperation, and upgrade both the quality and level of cooperation.

Second, facilitate mutual investment. We need to actively adapt to the changing investment environment, invest in new areas and improve investment pattern. We welcome more ROK companies to take an active part in infrastructural and environmental projects in central and western China and old industrial bases in northeast China, and increase investment in China in the key areas. The Chinese Government will continue to support and facilitate ROK investment in China. We will also continue to encourage well-established Chinese companies to invest and do business in the ROK and provide support to them. We hope that the ROK will also provide an enabling environment for Chinese companies investing here.

Third, expand cooperation in international economic affairs. In an increasingly globalized world, China and the ROK are conducting more coordination and cooperation in regional and global economic affairs. Chinese and ROK companies may engage in discussions about further cooperation in setting international standards, exploring international market and participating in the regional integration process.

Entrepreneurs and companies are a dynamic force in China-ROK business cooperation. The Chinese Government values and supports mutually beneficial cooperation between companies of both countries. We are ready to work with the ROK Government to deliver more benefits to the business communities by improving cooperation mechanisms, creating favorable