China provides 5-billion-dollar oil-related loan to Kazakhstan
Beijing - China extended a 5-billion-dollar loan Friday to Kazakhstan to expand oil cooperation between the two countries.
The government-owned China National Petroleum Corp announced the loan to Kazakhstan's state-run KazMunaiGas National Co during a visit by Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev to China.
The two firms plan to jointly take over the large Kazakh oil company Mangistaumunaigas, which develops oil fields, the official Chinese news agency Xinhua reported.
In return, China wants to obtain oil deliveries from the Central Asian country.
The two countries also plan to expand their political cooperation, Chinese President Hu Jintao said Thursday when meeting with Nazarbayev in Beijing, where the two countries signed 10 agreements on cooperation in transportation, education, agriculture and telecommunications.
Nazarbayev is to travel Friday to the Bo'ao Forum, an Asian economic meeting, on the southern Chinese island of Hainan. More than 2,700 people, including presidents and prime ministers, were expected to attend to discuss the world economic crisis. (dpa)