China and Costa Rica will launch free trade talks in January and hope to seal a deal by 2010.

Chinese President Hu Jintao made the official statement upon concluding his first visit to the Latin American country. He said free trade talks between the two countries will start in mid-January, and the countries hope to reach an agreement before May 2010.

Wang Xiaoyuan, Chinese ambassador to Costa Rica, said the visit of China's top leader marks a new stage in bilateral ties.

"This is a historic visit to Costa Rica by China's top leader since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two nations. It's also the first time a Chinese president has visited Central America. This visit will undoubtedly play a great role in improving bilateral ties."

The ambassador said since China and Costa Rica established diplomatic ties in June last year, bilateral relations have developed rapidly, and friendly cooperation has been expanded in various sectors.

Bruno Stagno, Costa Rica's Minister of Foreign Relations, applauded Hu Jintao's visit to the country.

"This is an unprecedented visit. I think relations between China and Costa Rica have entered into a new phase through Hu Jintao's visit. Both sides will take this chance to further implement endorsement deals."