Chinese President Hu Jintao?arrived in Berlin, capital of Germany, Thursday for a state visit to the European country.

It is President Hu's first state visit to Germany. He is expected to hold talks with German leaders on bilateral relations and major international and regional issues of common interest.

Hu will deliver an important speech at the German Asia-Pacific Economic Committee and take this opportunity to have a wide range of contacts with personalities from German political, business, educational and other sectors.

In recent years, China-Germany relations have developed soundly. The two countries have maintained exchanges of high-level visits, and political mutual trust has been strengthened constantly. The two nations have kept close consultation on international issues.

Germany is China's largest trading partner in Europe while China is Germany's largest trading partner in Asia. In 2004, trade between the two countries stood at US$54.1 billion, a 29-percent increase over the previous year. By the end of last year, Germany's direct investment in China had reached US$9.9 billion.

The Chinese president, who arrived here from London, will also visit Spain and South Korea, and attend the Economic Leaders' Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) scheduled to be held on Nov. 18-19 in Busan, South Korea.

(Xinhua News Agency November 10, 2005)