South Korea's President Lee Myung-bak arrives in China

South Korea's president Lee Myung-bak is starting his visit to China today in a bid to boost relations.

Mr Lee's visit comes at a time when China has been pushing to sign a trilateral free trade agreement with South Korea and Japan.

Negotiations on the pact are expected to start this year. Patrick Chovanec, professor at Tsinghua University in Beijing says a trade pact is expected to be high on the agenda.