SINGAPORE : Singapore and China's Ningbo City are set to step up their economic cooperation with a new comprehensive agreement signed on Tuesday.

Singapore is Ningbo's 7th largest foreign investor, with some 234 projects in the city.

The latest agreement covers collaborations in 15 projects, estimated to be worth some S$1.3 billion. The key areas of cooperation include port-related projects, logistics, urban planning and financial services.

"The global financial market is very unstable now, but among the emerging financial markets, China is quite stable. However, we still need to improve our financial system if we want to spur our trade sector further," said Mao Guanglie, mayor of Ningbo City in China.

Mr Mao added that the recently announced stimulus package of 4 trillion yuan (US$586 billion) by the Chinese government will help boost the economy.

Last year, some 241 Singapore companies invested in Ningbo, with a total investment of some S$550 million. - CNA /ls