The Republic of Korea's ambassador to China Kim Ha Joong said his country's trade with China will top US$200 billion by 2012, when the two countries will celebrate 20 years of establishing diplomatic relations.

The ROK and China have maintained close cooperation in political, economic, trade and cultural sectors since they forged ties in 1992, Kim said at the China (Shandong)-ROK Friendly Week in Jinan, capital of coastal Shandong Province.

Bilateral trade, he said, has soared from an annual US$5 billion in the early 1990s to US$134.3 billion last year.

China is the ROK's largest trading partner and investment destination, he said.

By the end of last year, ROK businesses had invested nearly US$35 billion in China. ROK's electronics giant Samsung alone had invested more than US$5 billion.

Shandong Province is a key destination for ROK investment with many Korean-funded companies located in Jinan, Qingdao, Yantai and Weihai.

Closer exchanges in recent years have caused a craze among Chinese for ROK barbecues, clothing, cosmetics and soap operas.

To celebrate 15 years of relations with China, ROK friendly weeks have been staged in several other Chinese cities in recent weeks, including Tianjin and Xi'an.

(Xinhua News Agency July 16, 2007)