British Prime Minister David Cameron arrives in China Monday at the head of a 100-strong trade delegation.

The move represents a warming of relations between the two countries. Cameron will include Beijing and Shanghai in his three-day tour.

Accompanied by more than 100 business leaders, it is the biggest trade mission in modern Sino-British history.

When in China, the prime minister will be building on the success of visits in October by Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne and the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson.

Osborne announced less stringent rules for Chinese banks operating in London in a push to make the British capital the main offshore hub for trading in China's currency and bonds.

A senior source in Cameron's office said British exports to China had increased by 20 percent in the first six months of this year, while inward investment by China was at its highest level in decades.

The timing of Cameron's trip is good, the source said, because it came soon after China's leadership set new long-term policy priorities which included further opening the economy.

Xavier Rolet, the chief executive of the London Stock Exchange, is expected to travel with Cameron, according to Reuters.

The business delegation is also expected to include Andrew Witty, the chief executive of GlaxoSmithKline. The company was drawn into a bribery case in China earlier this year which resulted in police detaining four Chinese GSK executives.

Xinhua - Reuters