CANBERRA, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- A banquet celebrating the Chinese lunar new year has been held in Adelaide, the capital of South Australia.

At the event, Li Dong, consul general of the Chinese Consulate-General in Adelaide, said that China-Australia and China-South Australia relations have seen recovery and development.

China continues to be the largest trading partner of Australia and South Australia, with bilateral trade accounting for 31 percent and 17 percent of total foreign trade respectively, Li said, adding that South Australia's exports to China saw a year-on-year increase of more than 40 percent in 2023.

The past year was a period of significant achievement, immense prosperity, and strength in South Australia-China relationship, Premier of South Australia Peter Malinauskas said.

A visit by his delegation of senior representatives from across South Australia's education, agriculture, and food and wine sector to China last September presented an opportunity to promote the state's businesses, Malinauskas said.

Two memorandums of understanding across education and food sectors were signed during the trip, a true and tangible illustration of the two sides' shared commitment to deepening relationship, he said.

He also highlighted South Australia's 38-year sister-state relationship with east China's Shandong province, which has been the driving force behind collaborative efforts, fostering not only economic ties but also cultural exchanges.