Foreign minister Luigi Di Maio and China's trade minister Zhong Shan held talks on Tuesday aimed at boosting bilateral economic and trade cooperation, the Italian foreign ministry said in a statement.
During their talks, Di Maio and Zhong agreed to accelerate negotiations to facilitate the export of Italian agri-food products to China and looked at the potential to grow Chinese investments in Italy, according to the statement.
As part of efforts to strengthen trade with China, the economic development ministry is transferring powers to the foreign ministry that will involve it more closely in Italy's global economic strategy, the statement said.
Di Maio and Zhong met on the sidelines of the second China International Import Expo in Shanghai, where Di Maio vowed to promote exports of Italian goods to the world's second largest economy.
