Chinese and Portuguese businesspeople have formed an association called PorCham in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, Lusa reports.

The Portuguese news agency says PorCham has 50 members, mostly Chinese companies doing business in Portugal, which together do business worth 2.5 billion euros (about US$2.89 billion) a year.

The report quotes one of the founders, Dário Silva, as saying the formation of PorCham on Monday is a step towards establishing in China a Portuguese chamber of commerce and industry.

Mr Silva said PorCham was setting up one fund to invest in real estate and another to invest in manufacturing, and was promoting investment in one business venture in healthcare and another in making composites.

PorCham will promote sales of Portuguese products at Chinese trade fairs, in view of the difficulty sellers have in attending such events physically while the COVID-19 pandemic lasts, Lusa quotes Mr Silva as saying.