Shanghai, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi on Saturday called for closer cooperation between Italian port cities and Shanghai.

Prodi made the remarks in a meeting with Shanghai Mayor Han Zheng. He said Italy and China should jointly accelerate the development of the logistics industry and expand sea routes to Europe through Italian ports.

Prodi noted that his trip to Shanghai was to highlight economic, trade, cultural and educational cooperation, strengthen Shanghai's role as an access for Italian businesses to the Chinese markets and at the same time enhance Italy's part in serving as a gateway to the European market for Chinese businesses.

The Italian prime minister also visited the Shanghai World Expo Park now under construction and attended a China-Italy seminar on Shanghai World Expo.

Prodi said he was amazed by the large scale blueprint Shanghai has made for the 2010 World Expo and admired the efficient organization work. He is the first foreign leader to visit the World Expo Park in Shanghai.

According to latest statistics, Italy has directly invested in 341 projects in Shanghai, with a total contractual investment of 403 million U.S. dollars, covering garments, bags, auto parts and building materials.

Prodi arrived in Shanghai on Friday evening. Before coming to Shanghai, he visited Nanjing and Guangzhou. His trip will also take him to Tianjin, a port city in north China, and Beijing. Enditem