Uruguay will attend the 10th edition of the China-LAC business fair to be held in the Asian country in October with the aim of attracting investment in infrastructure, officials with the Uruguay XXI export agency told EFE on Tuesday.

“We want to present the advantages Uruguay has for making investments. We’re a country with macroeconomic, social and political stability, along with being investment grade and with tools like the free ports law. The idea is to present this menu,” said Uruguay XXI executive director Antonio Carambula at a workshop on the Chinese market.

“We believe we have many opportunities in the food sector. Uruguay is a country of three million inhabitants that produces food for 30 million and, above all, quality food and with an agro-intelligent approach, we think we have many opportunities to continue growing,” he said.

“China has been our No. 1 trade partner for a long time – practically 20 percent of our exports go to China. Last year, we exported ... about $2 billion worth,” Carambula said, adding that soybeans, meat and cellulose are the main products Uruguay sells to the Asian giant.

The China-LAC Business Summit is being held with the aim of developing greater economic cooperation between China and the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, specifically in trade and investment.

In 2015, the fair was held in Mexico and attended by more than 700 companies and institutions from China, Latin America and the Caribbean. This 10th edition of the event will be held on Oct. 14-15 in the Chinese city of Tangshan.

In 2017, Uruguay will host the China-LAC summit and Uruguay XXI will handle organizing the event with the support of the Foreign Ministry, the Uruguay-China Chamber and other organizations.

Date: August 2, 2016