Chinese President Hu Jintao and his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama agreed on Wednesday to take positive steps to further increase people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.

Addressing a joint press conference with Obama, Hu said the exchanges between the two peoples represent the basis and the driving force behind the growth of China-U.S. relationship.

He said robust exchanges between the two peoples since the establishment of diplomatic ties helped promote the steady growth of China-U.S. relations.

"Each year we have about 3 million people traveling between our two countries. In other words, on every single day about 7,000 to 8,000 people traveling between China and the United States," Hu said.

In addition, the two countries have already established sister relationships between 36 provinces and states and also developed 161 pairs of sister cities, he said.

Hu said the Chinese government is supportive of the friendly exchanges between the two peoples, and has been creating all kinds of conditions to expand the friendly exchanges between the U.S. and the Chinese peoples.

"I would like to particularly stress here that the young people hold the future of this relationship," Hu said, adding that the two sides will encourage the young people in the two countries to go to each other's countries to pursue further education and to learn more about each other.

Hu said the two countries will also further expand cultural exchanges, develop tourism and use a variety of means to further increase people-to-people exchanges.

Hu made the remarks after he and Obama held talks under "candid, pragmatic and constructive atmosphere" and reached important consensus.