SHANGHAI, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates continued his China trade promotion visit on Friday in Shanghai, promoting trade and investment between the two countries.

    Addressing a "China-Portugal Trade Forum", Socrates said Portugal was willing to become an important participant in China's economic development.

    Portugal lay in a central position between the European Union, Africa and Latin America and had advantages in language, ports and logistics, so it could be a bridge for Chinese companies to expand, Socrates said.

    "Portugal is not only interested in the Chinese market, but also welcomes Chinese companies to invest and do business in Portugal," he said.

    Socrates led 70 entrepreneurs from Portugal to attend the forum which attracted more than 100 Chinese companies.

    A number of agreements were signed during the forum, bringing about more cooperation between Chinese and Portuguese companies in the areas of company management, trade fairs, wine and telecommunications equipment.

    The trade volume between Shanghai and Portugal reached 275 million U.S. dollars in 2006, a 10-fold increase in five years.

    Socrates praised Shanghai's development, predicting that Shanghai would become Asia's largest economic and financial center.