Ceremony to celebrate Chinese New Year

LAHORE:Punjab Board of Investment and Trade (PBIT) arranged a cake-cutting ceremony to celebrate Chinese New Year here.

The year 2020 is the year of rat, also known as the Year of the Golden Rat, which will be officially inaugurated in China on January 25, accompanied by 15 days of celebrations and holidays.

Chinese Consul General in Lahore Long Dingbin was the guest of honour while the PBIT chairman hosted the ceremony. PBIT Chief Executive Officer Jahanzeb Burana welcomed the respected consul general while Adviser to Chief Minister Dr Salman Shah, P&D Chairman Hamed Yaqub Sheikh and a large number of guests attended the event.

The Chinese consul general said that hosting the Chinese New Year celebratory reception reflected the priority attached by the Pakistan government to the relations between the two countries. The Chinese side also attaches great importance to Pakistan-China relations and is willing to work on the basis of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit to make the Pakistan-China friendship stronger.

Dr Salman Shah said that Pakistan-China friendship was very valuable and Pakistan highly regarded its relationship with China. In the new year, Pakistan looks forward to working with China to achieve more concrete results through the bilateral cooperation in various fields, he added.

The whole venue was decorated with traditional Chinese red lanterns, Pakistani and Chinese flags and balloons. The participants from all walks of life spoke highly of the Pakistan-China friendship and expressed their best wishes for closer cooperation between the two countries and more "golden fruits" in the Chinese New Year of “Golden Rat.”