German Chancellor Angela Merkel is continuing her 3-day trip to China, as the two countries prepare to mark 40 years of diplomatic relations. But as the two sides look to enhance bilateral ties, the eurozone debt crisis is also taking on importance.

On Friday morning, Chinese President Hu Jintao held official meetings with Merkel in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. During their talk, President Hu emphasized the importance of cooperation between the two countries.

Chinese President Hu Jintao (R) meets with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Beijing, capital of China, Feb. 3, 2012. [Xinhua/Ma Zhancheng]

He said: "I believe Madam Chancellor's visit to China will be very helpful to strengthen the mutual understanding and trust and push forward the development of bilateral cooperation between China and Germany."

China's top legislator Wu Bangguo also met with Merkel on the same day.

The trade volume between China and Germany will "hopefully" exceed 200 billion U.S. dollars this year.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao made the remarks in Guangdong province on Friday afternoon, during a meeting with the visiting German Chancellor, and corporate executives from both countries. The southern province of China already sees the presence of some 500 German companies.

Merkel came to China at a critical time for the eurozone. The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing was her first stop earlier on Thursday morning, where she addressed the issues behind the eurozone debt crisis, to hundreds of reporters, scholars and business people from China and Germany. She stressed the importance for eurozone countries to show spending discipline.

Merkel said: "The more debt we take on in the past, the more interest we will have to pay in the future, and the less confidence investors will have in us. We cannot simply roll over today's debts."