Aerial photo shows a China-Europe cargo train loaded with containers of electronic products and accessories of household appliances leaving for Russia's Vorsino in Nanjing, east China's Jiangsu Province, Jan. 27, 2021. A total of 60,000 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) containers have been shipped from Nanjing to Europe since its maiden journey in 2016. (Xinhua/Li Bo)

China's foreign trade with Central and Eastern European countries grow by 8.4% in 2020 exceeding $100 billion, which is faster than the country's annual trade volume with Europe as a whole, and also faster than China's yearly foreign trade growth rate for the year, Gao Feng, spokesperson of the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said on Thursday.

Since 2012, the country's trade with these countries has posted annual growth of 8 percent, Gao said. He said that the countries have actively participated in the China International Import Expo and their high-quality brands are becoming popular in the Chinese market.

Meanwhile, investment cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European countries has continued to expand. 

By the end of 2020, Chinese foreign direct investment in Central and Eastern European countries' sectors including energy, infrastructure and logistics amounted to a gross $3.14 billion, while those countries' investment in China reached $1.72 billion, data from the MOFCOM showed.

In addition, transport connections are increasingly developed. In 2020, China launched 12,400 China-Europe Railway Express services, with countries like Poland, Hungary and Czech becoming key passages and destinations of the link, said the trade ministry.

Also, cooperation among the provincial level continues to deepen, Gao said. Ningbo, East China's Zhejiang Province actively promotes the establishment of "17+1" economic and trade cooperation demonstration zone, while Cangzhou, North China's Hebei Province has established a cooperation zone for smaller companies from China and Central and Eastern European countries to promote cooperation in sectors including aviation, agriculture and high-end manufacturing, he said.