Chinese President Hu Jintao arrived in Singapore on Wednesday for a state visit and the Economic Leaders Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.

President Hu released a statement upon arrival at the Singapore Changi International Airport, saying he was ready to work for new progress in bilateral relations through this visit.

In the statement, Hu said China and Singapore were friendly neighbors and the two peoples enjoyed a time-honored and profound friendship.

Hu said, since the two countries established diplomatic ties in October 1990, the bilateral relationship had made rapid progress, with fruitful practical cooperation and close coordination in international and regional affairs.

During the state visit, at the invitation of Singapore President S. R. Nathan, Hu will meet with Nathan, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and other senior officials, and will also have extensive contacts with people of various sectors.

China is now the third largest trade partner of Singapore, while Singapore is the 10th largest trade partner of China. Bilateral trade reached 52.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2008, up 10.5 percent over the previous year. In October last year, the two countries signed a free trade agreement, which came into force two months later.

In Singapore, Hu will also attend the Economic Leaders Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Cooperation (APEC) and elaborate China's proposition on economic, trade and other major issues.

"I look forward to attending the 17th APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting to exchange views with leaders of other APEC members on deepening Asia-Pacific cooperation and making contribution to regional peace, stability and prosperity," Hu said in the statement.

Hu will also address the APEC CEO Summit on the sidelines of the APEC Economic Leaders Meeting.

Under the theme "Sustaining Growth, Connecting the Region," leaders at the Singapore meeting will address the major issues related to overcoming the global financial crisis and promoting a sustainable economic recovery in the post-crisis world.

Established in 1989, APEC has 21 members, which account for about 41 percent of the world's population, 56 percent of world GDP and about 49 percent of world trade.

APEC's 21 member economies are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, China's Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, the United States and Vietnam.

APEC has developed into a premier forum for facilitating economic growth, cooperation, trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific region. APEC 2009 will focus on overcoming the economic crisis and positioning member economies for a sustainable recovery in the post-crisis world.

The annual APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting, inaugurated in November 1993, was designed to set the strategic policy direction for APEC.

At the end of the meeting, the APEC Economic Leaders' declaration will be issued, outlining the shared views of leaders on key topics and setting the strategic direction of APEC for the forthcoming year.

The Chinese leader flew into Singapore from Malaysia where he concluded a one-day state visit.