Chinese companies signed agreements on five investment projects in Romania with a value of more than €100mn at a conference of ministers of economy and trade in China, the Romanian economy minister said on June 10.

The bilateral cooperaton projects, which were signed in the presence of Economy Minister Costin Borc, target the automotive, renewable energy, real estate and education sectors.

Specifically, the projects refer to the construction of a €45mn plant producing parts for the automotive industry in the central city of Brasov, the construction of a 20MW solar plant worth €33mn and investments worth €23mn in real estate projects around Romania’s capital Bucharest.

Another project concerns auto ornaments and envisages an investment of $17.6mn, while a project on cooperation in the education sector has also been signed.

Trade between Romania and China reached $3.8bn last year and figures from the first quarter of this year show a small yearly increase, of 1.4%, of Romanian exports to the Chinese market, Borc said.

“The trade deficit that we have is a matter of continuous concern and we are working hard with a view to reducing it; intense discussions with our Chinese partners are underway about appropriate steps that are needed in order to secure the market access of Romanian products by doing away with non-tariff barriers, particularly in relation to agricultural and food products,” Borc told the conference.