BEIJING, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- Trade volume between China and the United States has grown rapidly over the past 38 years, and trade has become a mainstay in stable bilateral relations, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said Thursday.
Sino-U.S. trade volume grew from 2.5 billion U.S. dollars in 1979 to about 519.6 billion dollars in 2016, surging by 211 times within 38 years, according to MOC statistics.
Bilateral service trade volume totalled over 100 billion dollars while mutual investment exceeded 170 billion dollars by the end of 2016.
China and the United States share integrated interests with bilateral trade and investment expanding into more fields, said Sun Jiwen, spokesperson for the MOC.
A report from the U.S.-China Business Council (USCBC) showed that bilateral trade and investment in 2015 created about 2.6 million jobs for Americans and contributed to about 1.2 percent of U.S. GDP that year.
The USCBC expects U.S. exports to China to reach 520 billion U.S. dollars in volume by 2050, while China's exports to the United States will help lower local prices by 1 to 1.5 percentage points.
Sino-U.S. trade and investment ties, which are mutually beneficial, are the anchor and propeller of bilateral relations, and China is willing to work with the new U.S. leadership to continue promoting stable bilateral trade and investment to benefit the two country's people, Sun said.