Swiss president pledges to strengthen bilateral relations, collaboration

Visiting Swiss President Ueli Maurer pledged on Tuesday to strengthen the "already-very-good" bilateral relations between Bern and Beijing and further deepen collaboration in trade and finance.

Maurer, who embarked on a weeklong trip in China on Tuesday, told a media conference in Shanghai that he hopes his country can act as a 'pioneer' and 'test field' for China to enter the Western market.

During his visit, the Shanghai Stock Exchange and its counterpart, SIX Swiss Exchange, agreed to assess the feasibility of listing securities, such as depository receipts, on their respective markets in the near future under a renewed Memorandum of Understanding.

The depository receipts, once coming into realization, would allow companies listed at either bourse to tap into each other's liquidity pools. No timetable is provided.

Collaboration also can extend to the issuance of funds, so that Chinese enterprises stand to purchase or issue funds to support projects related to, for example, the Belt and Road Initiative, said Romeo Lacher, president of SIX Group AG.

Delegations from the two countries also held a seminar exploring joint opportunities in the realm of financial technology.

Maurer will depart for Beijing to attend the second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation.

The two countries are expected to sign an MOU on cooperation with third markets under the Belt and Road Initiative during the visit.

The high-level engagement between the two countries and the signing of a raft of MOUs are conducive to both bilateral relations and regional cooperation, said Wan Guanghua, director of the Institute of World Economy at Fudan University.

"Switzerland is globally renowned for its advanced financial services sector. From constructing financial systems to addressing financial risks, there are a lot of things Beijing can learn from Bern," Wan said.