ROME, Aug. 24 (Xinhua) -- Italian Economy and Finance Minister Giovanni Tria will visit China next week, in his first official trip outside Europe since he was appointed in early June.
The minister will be accompanied by a large business delegation, and by the Deputy Governor of the Bank of Italy, Fabio Panetta, the Economy Ministry said in a note on Friday.
"Minister Tria's mission in China follows that of president of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, last year," the statement read.
"The goal is to further strengthen the ties between the two countries, which could enjoy a mutual benefit from an increase in economic, financial, and commercial relations," it added.
Minister Tria's visit would aim at boosting Sino-Italian ties from both a multilateral and bilateral perspective, the statement specified.
Several meetings with China's institutional representatives, and with financial and monetary authorities, were to take place during the visit in both Beijing and Shanghai.
Tria would be received by his Chinese counterpart, Finance Minister Liu Kun, and would hold talks with the Governor of the People's Bank of China, Yi Gang.
"Italy and China share a desire to maintain a spirit of collaboration in the orderly development of the global economy, and have an interest in cooperating to defend the financial markets' stability," the ministry's statement also read.
In his six-day trip, Tria would meet local authorities in Shanghai, and representatives from the Italian and the Chinese business communities there.
Italy's President Mattarella paid a state visit to China in February last year, followed by then Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni in May. Finally, Italian Foreign Minister with the previous government Angelino Alfano met with his Chinese counterpart in Beijing in December 2017.
Earlier this week, Italy's Economic Development Ministry (MISE) announced the launch of a "Task Force China" aimed at strengthening bilateral trade and investments.
