Mrs. Arroyo is also expected to discuss with Chinese leader Jiang Zemin overlapping claims to the Spratlys island chain in the South China Sea, a constant irritant to bilateral ties.
Mrs. Arroyo leaves on an overnight trip to Hong Kong tomorrow to address the influential World Economic Forum, an independent organization funded by the world’s leading companies, before flying to Beijing the next day.
Apart from Jiang, Mrs. Arroyo will also meet with Premier Zhu Rongji as well as address a business forum and hold a dialogue with students and faculty of Tsinghua University, the presidential palace said.
"We will be discussing many matters regarding trade and investment, cultural exchanges," Mrs. Arroyo told reporters Friday.
She and Jiang would also be "working on agreements that will help us fight transnational crime," including an extradition treaty which could curb illegal drug trafficking and kidnap for ransom cases.
Asked if the Spratlys issue will be discussed with Jiang, she said: "If he is going to take it up, we will discuss it."
The Spratlys, believed sitting atop vast natural reserves, is claimed by both countries as well as Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan.
All of the claimants maintain troops in the area, except for Brunei, making the Spratlys a powder keg for armed conflict.
Mrs. Arroyo’s trip comes as Manila is struggling to shore up investor confidence amid worries over increased competition from China’s entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO).
But while China’s WTO entry would affect the exports of its smaller neighbors, Mrs. Arroyo believes Philippine businessmen have nothing to fear.
Philippine exports survived when China was once granted a most-favored nation status by the United States during the term of former President Bill Clinton, she said.
Total bilateral trade, in China’s favor, hit $887 million in the first seven months of the year, official figures showed.
Filipino businessmen involved in agriculture, information technology and food sectors among others would accompany the President to explore trade deals, said Mike Jarasco, head of the trade department’s foreign trade services unit. – Marichu Villanueva