European Commission President Romano Prodi is in Beijing this Tuesday promoting partnership development with China - alone this time

European Commission President Romano Prodi is in Beijing this Tuesday promoting partnership development with China - alone this time, rather than with the EU presidency, as during last October's China-EU summit. Relations are good but Brussels is making serious efforts to address the changes in the flow of trade. The total volume last year was about 135 billion euros, well up from 2002's 116 billion but its 47-billion-euro deficit of that year has swollen. China is now the EU's largest trade partner after the US and the bloc is China's second-largest export market. Recently, cooperation moved into the technological domain, for instance Beijing agreed to contribute 200 million euros to the EU's Galileo satellite navigation programme. From high-tech to no-tech: a readmission agreement on migration will also figure on Prodi's agenda in the three days he is in China. 'An open and constructive atmosphere' and 'efficiency' are among the terms used in official descriptions about sensitive dialogue, including human rights. The next full China-EU summit is in December.