Abudu Reheman Ayli, a deputy to the Ninth National People's Congress (NPC), said this will benefit bilateral and multilateral economic cooperation among SCO members, which including China, Russia and the four Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikstan and Uzbekstan.

Ayli said political cooperation between members of the SCO, the first regional organization initiated by China, remains smooth, yet regional economic cooperation is just at the beginning.

He suggested the SCO exposition be held in Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang, in summer or autumn, or take turns among the member countries, with participants from government departments of foreign trade and economic cooperation, customs, commodities inspection, communications and tourism, as well as representatives of enterprises concerned.

The annual event will help promote cooperation in these fields, expand trade between China and other members in oil, chemical, textile, machinery and electrical and light industries, as well as agriculture and animal husbandry, he said.

The SCO was founded in Shanghai last year, and its principal purpose is to strengthen the effective cooperation of member countries in the areas of politics, economy, trade, science and technology, culture, education, energy, communications and environmental protection, among others.

Xinjiang has a common borderline with four of the SCO members, and 60 percent of its foreign trade has been done with these countries.

(Xinhua News Agency March 13, 2002)