Pena Nieto hopes Bank of China will soon operate in Mexico

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto said Sunday he hopes Bank of China, the nation’s fourth largest, will operate soon in Mexico.

His statement came at the beginning of a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping at the Guest House, where the twoday G20 Summit was inaugurated on Sunday and in which both leaders are taking part.

During the meeting, the Mexican president stressed that the Asian banking entity had already received administrative authorization to begin activities in his country.

Mexico already has the presence of Chinese bank ICBC, Pena Nieto said, referring to the world’s largest bank that received its license in 2014 and opened its first office in the country in 2015.

The Mexican president stressed his country’s close relationship with China and advocated further strengthening it along the lines of the comprehensive strategic partnership established during Xi’s visit to Mexico in 2014.

Pena Nieto also noted that both countries have a binational fund for investment in diverse projects above $50 million.

Xi said the two countries have benefited from ties in trade, finance, investment and energy, and expressed his willingness to jointly work with Mexico in forums such as ChinaCELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States), according to stateowned Xinhua agency.

According to a statement by the Mexican Presidency, the two presidents committed towards increasing bilateral trade which last year increased to $74.9 billion and expressed willingness to prioritize bilateral agenda in investments.