The Philippines will achieve great success in cooperating with China in terms of trade considering the shared talents in business of Filipino and Chinese people, declared two Chinese government officials.

At a dinner reception during the recent five-day tour of Philippine media to China's Fujian province, Yao Jianhong, the deputy director general of Xiamen City's Foreign Affairs Office, said both peoples "are businessmen in nature" and have "genes" in business, so he is seeing a "better and greater success in their endeavors."

"I believe that with a favorable political situation, business environment, we will see greater success and more benefits for the two peoples," Yao said, speaking with an interpreter.

Yao was confident in making such a pronouncement, particularly for Filipino businessmen, because Xiamen, one of China's thriving cities, is well-connected to the Philippines because of direct flights with Manila, that facilitates trade.

Xiamen may also connect the Philippines with other parts of the world, he said.

"You could also find that there's a service we call China Railway express that runs to Central Europe, Central Asia and Europe," he said.

Yao also said the city government of Xiamen is treating foreign investors the way it does with the locals, so the environment will be equally "favorable" for them.

"You can all find the business here, and then they can use Xiamen as a springboard to the greater Chinese market," he said.

"We welcome all businessmen here to start a business and invest here. That will include businessmen from the Philippines," he added.

One of the Philippines' leading malls, SM, has a branch in Xiamen, proving that Filipino business could thrive in the Chinese city.

Meanwhile, Yao Fei, the vice mayor of another Chinese city, Quanzhou, offered another favorable avenue for Filipino business—China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

He said the Philippines will benefit from the project considering its success in other nations, such as in Indonesia and other countries in Africa.

China launched BRI, a major foreign policy of President Xi Jinping, as it believes that "if you want to become rich or prosperous, the first thing you should do is to build a better route," the vice mayor said.

He added that BRI was launched not only for the development of China and the Chinese people, but for the common good of humanity.

The Philippines recently withdrew its request for official development assistance for a railway project from China, while six more are delayed due to various factors, including economic and geopolitics.

Yao said he respects the Philippines' decision, but he urged the latter the reconsider its decision as the "BRI framework will surely bring concrete benefits for the Philippines and its people."