The EU is pushing to boost its exports to China as the world's second largest economy attempts to increase domestic consumption, according an EU delegate in Beijing.

"I think the trade between China and EU has great potential", said Johan Cauwenbergh, minister counselor, head of the EU Operations Development & Cooperation, Delegation of the European Union.

The EU's trade deficit to China remained around 130 billion euros ($167.41 billion) in 2009, "it is in the common interest to both the EU and China not to let the gap become too big." The EU is now China's largest trading partner.

The EU's imports from China have increased 60 percent between 2005 to 2009, making China the EU's fastest growing export market, he said.

In terms of service trading, imports from the EU to China expanded six fold during the period from 1994 to 2004. Thursday the EU exports more services to China than it imports.

Despite these increases in goods and service trading in 2009, the EU still exported goods and services of higher nominal value to Switzerland than export to China. The Swiss population is only around 8 million, about half of that of Beijing, Cauwenbergh said, adding that China can import more value-added goods from the EU.

The EU's statements come on the heels of China's announcement that it is trying to reduce its trade surplus in an effort to rebalance its economy.

This year China's trade surplus is expected to reach $50 to $100 billion, a quarter to 40 percent of the average trade surplus of $200 to 250 billion over the past three years, said Wei Jianguo, secretary-general of China Center for Interna-tional Economic Exchange, at the seminar.

Trade surplus for the first seven months reached $83.93 billion, down 21.2 percent over the same period of last year, according to General Administration of Customs' data.

China will further promote imports which will play an important role in fine-tuning the country's economic structure and ensure energy-saving and sustainable growth, said Yao Jian, spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce, at a press conference Tuesday.

The government will facilitate imports through forums and trade fairs, Yao said "through these efforts, China's trade will have a sustainable and balanced development."

The China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and the China Chamber of International Commerce launched a trade exhibition center recently in Shanghai.