China, Fiji mark 50 years of diplomatic ties with stronger partnership vision: spokeswoman

China attaches great significance to the diplomatic relations with Fiji, and is willing to further deepen mutual trust and expand cooperation across various field, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ming at a press briefing in Beijing on Wednesday.

Mao made the statement in response to a media query regarding the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between China and Fiji which fell on Wednesday.

"Today [Wednesday] marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between China and Fiji. President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang have exchanged congratulatory messages with Fijian President Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu and Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka respectively to jointly celebrate this historic milestone in bilateral relations. Fiji was the first Pacific island country to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. Over the past five decades, under the strategic guidance of the leaders of the two sides, China-Fiji relations have made remarkable progress and grown ever stronger. As President Xi noted in his message, the two countries have always respected each other, treated each other as equals and pursued win-win cooperation, supporting each other in pursuing development paths suited to their respective national conditions, regardless of changes in the international landscape. In recent years, the two sides have achieved fruitful results under the framework of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, bringing tangible benefits to their people and fostering even stronger bonds of friendship," said Mao.

"China attaches great importance to its relations with Fiji. We are ready to work hand in hand with the Fijian side to implement the consensus reached by the two heads of state, deepen political mutual trust, broaden practical cooperation, and advance the comprehensive strategic partnership to a new level, so as to deliver greater benefits to the people of both countries," the spokeswoman said.

China's software and information technology services industry saw a rapid expansion in the first two months of this year, reporting double-digit growth in terms of revenues, official data showed Tuesday.

In the January-February period, the total revenue of the software sector rose 11.7 percent year on year to more than 2.15 trillion yuan (about 311.83 billion U.S. dollars), while the total profits climbed 7.3 percent to 269.3 billion yuan, according to data released by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Software exports increased by 12.7 percent on a yearly basis.

Software products registered steady growth in revenue in the two months, accounting for 21.9 percent of the industry's total revenue. Information technology services maintained double-digit growth and raked in roughly 1.45 trillion yuan in revenue, taking up 67.2 percent of the industry's total revenue.