RIO DE JANEIRO, Jan. 7 (Xinhua) -- China's decision to open its door wider to foreign companies will help bolster China-Brazil economic, trade and financial partnership, a Brazilian business leader said.

The Chinese government has taken a series of measures, among them supports for foreign companies, and "it seems to me to be very important," Brazil-China Business Council (CEBC) President Luiz Augusto Castro Neves told Xinhua.

"There are several Brazilian companies established in China, and there will certainly be others that are interested," said Neves, citing China's more welcoming regulations.

"Any company that intends to invest wants to know what the regulatory environment is like in the destination market, in other words, what you can do and what you can't do," he said.

China is the leading trade partner and largest foreign investor in Brazil while Brazil is looking to diversify its exports to China, said Neves, who served as Brazil's ambassador to China from 2004 to 2008, a period when the bilateral ties grew remarkably.

The China-Brazil High-Level Coordination and Cooperation Committee was created in 2004. Two years later, the committee held its first meeting, so Neves had the opportunity to witness each step in China's efforts to perfect its economic policies.

Neves praised China's decision to modify the government's role from "ratifying or approving" the establishment of foreign companies to "supporting and serving" them.

"Greater opening-up of the market and less intervention lead to a simple and clear regulatory environment," said Neves, expressing confidence that the China-Brazil ties will continue to flourish.

The Brazilian businesses are banking on the relationship to keep expanding, he said.

"Brazil's private sector is also hoping these ties of cooperation with China will grow even more," said Neves.

More than 200 Chinese companies are operating in 23 of Brazil's 27 states, said Neves, "so I hope the presence of Brazilian companies in China increases as well."

To that end, various Brazilian organizations, including the CEBC and the export and investment promotion agency APEX, "which already has representative offices in China, will promote the bilateral economic and trade ties in conjunction with the Chinese government," said Neves.