Transportation ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China on October 28 pledged to work together for closer port cooperation.

The commitment was made at the two-day China-ASEAN Port Development and Cooperation Forum, themed "strengthening regional cooperation and promoting common development", which was held during the ongoing 4th China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO) in Nanning of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

Some 450 corporate executives of port administration, shipping, logistics, shipbuilding and repair, port equipment manufacturing, harbour investors, and experts and scholars met at the forum to exchange views on the impact of the international shipping industry on regional port cooperation and logistics, as well as the development strategy and financing of ports and port cities.

A joint declaration on China-ASEAN port development and cooperation is likely to be passed at the forum.

The port forum is one of the nine forums or conferences held during this years' CAEXPO, covering a wide range of topics including electric power development, poverty reduction, and product quality supervision.

ASEAN is comprised of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Viet Nam.

Source: VNA