The cooperation between China and Arab today is just the continuation of a long legacy of trade that extends back to ancient times, said Zhu Hongren, chief engineer of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

He made these remarks at the first China-Arab States Small and Mid-Sized Enterprises Cooperation Forum, a key event during the ongoing China-Arab States Expo, held on Sept 15 in Yinchuan, capital of the Ningxia Hui autonomous region.

Trade between China and Arab countries has steadily grown over the past 10 years at an average annual rate of 30 percent despite regional political unrest and a global economic slowdown.