South Africa's Deputy President David Mabuza has hailed the impact of the South Africa-China Bi-National Commission, saying it had proven to be integral in the exploration of opportunities that exist between the two countries.

Speaking on Friday at the China-South Africa Business Roundtable Discussion in Shanghai, China, Mabuza said his visit to the Asian country was aimed at strengthening bilateral, political and economic relations between the two nations.

"Part of what our two countries agree on under this Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, is the pursuit of shared and inclusive growth and development. Integral to the realisation of this mutually beneficial development is business-to-business engagements with a view to promoting trade and investment in our respective countries," Mabuza said in  his address.

The South African Deputy President noted that the strong cooperation between South Africa and China had seen the total trade between the two countries grow from R271 billion (around $18.08 billion) in 2013 to R332 billion (around $22.1 billion) by the end of last year.

Mabuza arrived in China on Monday 28 October to co-chair the 7th Session of the South Africa-China Bi-National Commission.

During his stay in China, he has met with top government officials including Premier Li Keqiang and Vice President Wang Qishan. He also met with Chinese business leaders, whom he encouraged to invest in his country.

"We welcome existing investments by Chinese companies in sectors such as real estate, automotive industry and metals. These investments were further augmented by new commitments at the 2018 South Africa Investment Conference," Mabuza said on Saturday.

"Once again, we would like to call on you to prioritize South Africa as your investment destination."

Mabuza also urged business leaders from the two countries to emulate the government initiated engagement and create partnerships of their own for even more benefit.

(Information obtained from South African Presidency)