France stresses business, trade to heal China ties

* Lagarde urges French firms to seek China opportunities

* Tibet protests at Olympic torch relay hurt relations

* No drop in China orders to French firms, diplomat says

By Sophie Taylor

PARIS, March 24 (Reuters) - France sought to heal its fraught relationship with China on Tuesday with a conference that emphasised trade and business ties but eschewed any talk of political flashpoints such as Tibet.

French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde underlined China's economic clout as a way of helping France's firms survive the financial crisis in her opening address to government ministers and Chinese businessmen.

"According to (Chinese classic divination text) I-Ching, today's date corresponds to a beam of light after a period of darkness," she said to applause.

Lagarde urged French firms to seek out growth opportunities afforded by China's stimulus plan. Beijing is ploughing 4 trillion yuan ($586 billion) into a package heavily focused on infrastructure spending to counter the global economic slowdown.

Ties between China and France have deteriorated after the disruption of the Paris leg of the Olympic torch relay last summer by pro-Tibet activists incensed many Chinese.

China has ruled mountainous Tibet with an iron hand since People's Liberation Army troops marched into the region in 1950.

Further incidents, including Paris' decision to make Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, an honorary citizen, have fuelled tensions and led to sporadic boycotts of French firms operating in China such as retailer Carrefour.

The French overture comes just over a year after the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, erupted into riots that killed 19 mostly Han Chinese or Hui Muslim shopkeepers. This month also marks the 50th anniversary of the flight into exile of the Dalai Lama, whom Beijing condemns as a separatist.

LOOKING EAST

The political spat and the financial crisis have led to fears of protectionism, but a diplomat responsible for economic and financial affairs at the French embassy in Beijing played down such concerns.

There has been no noticeable drop in Chinese orders to French firms or exceptional visa problems, Hubert Testard told Reuters after the conference.

"France's image in China did suffer last spring immediately after the protests broke out, but now I think Chinese people see it as mainly an issue between two governments rather than between the two peoples," he said.

Chinese conference attendees were keen to make new French business contacts but some expressed private reservations over the effectiveness of France's efforts.

"France is constantly vacillating between its ideals of so-called human rights and practical realities. It'll take some time for relations to improve if things go on like this," said one Paris-based Chinese businessman. (Editing by Dominic Evans) ($1=6.829 Yuan)