China's Hu to help Portugal through crisis

Chinese President Hu Jintao said on Sunday his country will back Portugal's efforts to confront the financial crisis, but stopped short of vowing to buy Portuguese debt as the Iberian country hoped.

Chinese President Hu Jintao said on Sunday his country will back Portugal's efforts to confront the financial crisis, but stopped short of vowing to buy Portuguese debt as the Iberian country hoped.

HT Image

"We are willing to take concrete measures to help Portugal cope with the global financial crisis," he said after meeting Prime Minister Jose Socrates, without elaborating further.

He also said he will encourage Chinese companies to invest in Portugal. The two countries will also work to double their bilateral trade by 2015, Socrates said.