AMMAN — Stakeholders of the Chinese and Jordanian olive oil industry on Jan 28 expressed strong willingness to boost business cooperation, during a virtual meeting held by the Chinese Embassy in Jordan.

During the meeting with the aim of advancing bilateral olive oil trade activities, Chinese Ambassador to Jordan Chen Chuandong said that Jordanian-Chinese economic ties have been developing steadily in recent years, highlighting the fruitful results of the bilateral cooperation.

China is Jordan's third largest trading partner and the second largest importing nation, with trade between the two countries totaling $4.112 billion in 2019, marking a record annual growth of 29.17 percent, the ambassador said.

The Chinese diplomat said that olive oil is one of the kingdom's most important agricultural products with a distinguished reputation in global markets, while Chinese customers' demand for high-quality olive oil is increasing recently.

He said that the Chinese market is the most promising market, whose continued opening-up would inject a high momentum into the growth of the global economy.

Rong Weidong, vice-president of the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Foodstuffs, Native Produce, and Animal By-Products expressed the hope to build long-term access between the two countries in the olive oil industry and accelerate relevant trade activities.

Fayyad Zyoud, president of the Jordan Olive Products Exporters Association,  said that the Jordanian olive sector plays a vital role in kingdom's agriculture as well as in sustainable development and combating poverty.

Jordan yearly produces around 180,000 tons of olive fruit, with some 25,000 to 30,000 tons allocated for oil production and some 40,000 tons for pickling, according to the Jordanian official figures.