Trade pact with Mexico to be signed

China and Mexico are scheduled to sign a trade agreement Thursday, a move aimed at enhancing economic cooperation between the two countries, top Mexican officials said Wednesday.

The agreement is set to come just one week after the Mexican government announced it would cancel its decision to award a high-speed railway contract to a Chinese-led consortium.

"Due to our unique geographical location, Mexico could become an important channel for China to enter the North America and Latin America markets," Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto said. He also mentioned the reforms currently put forward to improve the country's economic system in terms of finance, energy, tax and other sectors, which include a $600 billion infrastructure investment plan.

Mexico has free trade agreements with more than 40 countries and regions around the world, but in Asia, it has inked such an agreement only with Japan.

Since June 2013 when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Mexico, the two countries have carried out frequent discussions over a possible trade pact. Currently, China is Mexico's second-largest trading partner, while Mexico is China's second-largest trading partner in Latin America.

However, the trade relationship between the two countries is asymmetric.

Of China's $100 billion overseas investment, Mexico only accounts for about $100 million, according to the country's Economy Secretary Ildefonso Guajardo Villarreal.

"How to attract more Chinese investment is a question we need to solve," he noted.