Trade between China and the European Union (EU) is expected to further improve, as the EU unveiled a new strategy that will fast-track the cooperation between the highly-influential economic bloc and the mainland.

This was revealed in a joint communication released on Wednesday by the European Commission and the European Parliament, China Daily reported.

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According to the document,  Europe not only views China as an invaluable trading partner, but also as a nation that is rapidly increasing its international influence, a development which should give the EU and China a reason to further strengthen their economic ties over the next five years.

According to Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying, the central government is looking forward to developing closer ties with the European Union from a long-term perspective that would result in increased EU-China trade.

Hua also disclosed that China has made an appeal for EU member-countries to grant China market economy by December.

He Jingtong, a professor of economic policy at Nankai University in Tianjin, noted that the EU confronts multiple political and economic challenges.

"China must prepare for more flexible strategies in dealing with Europe," He said. "This also requires China to readjust its policies to deal with individual members within the bloc to protect the interest of its companies."

"China also should enhance ties with Eastern and Central European countries to deepen cooperation to develop the Belt and Road Initiative," he added, underscoring the importance of boosting EU-China trade.

The European Commission's last communication on China was adopted a decade ago in 2006.

Belgium officials noted that the EU and China have both undergone considerable changes since that time and that the China of today has a stronger presence in all regions of the world, both economically and politically.

"Under such circumstances, the EU's new move will not only create a better platform for China to carry out its economic transformation, but is also key to Europe's own economic recovery," pointed out Ma Yu, a senior researcher at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation in Beijing.

"The EU can stimulate growth of new markets by diversifying trade and investment categories with Chinese companies,"  Ma added.

Based on European Union data, EU-China trade amounted to 521 billion euros ($592 billion) in 2015, as China's share of total trade in goods has doubled since 2002, rising from 7 percent to 15 percent. 

Tagschina, EU, China EU Trade