Foreign companies are optimistic about new opportunities for "investing in China"

Editor's note: The Two Sessions are important windows for the world to observe China's economic development, especially for foreign investment. "We will increase efforts to attract foreign investment, continue to reduce the negative list of foreign investment access, comprehensively lift restrictions on foreign investment access in the manufacturing industry, relax market access in service industries such as telecommunications and healthcare. We will expand the list of industries that encourage foreign investment and encourage foreign enterprises to reinvest domestically..." "Strengthen foreign investment service guarantees, and build the 'Invest in China' brand." The 2024 Chinese government work report released a positive signal of continuing to expand high-level opening up and promoting foreign investment and business in China. ". Many foreign executives have told Global Times reporters that China's advantages such as a super large market and a complete industrial system are highly attractive. The long-term positive economic fundamentals and continuously optimized business measures have left them with firm confidence in China.
"I am optimistic about the long-term positive fundamentals of China's economic development"
The growth of gross domestic product (GDP) is about 5%, which is one of the main expected goals proposed by the government work report for this year's development, and also the most concerned indicator by all parties. "We are full of confidence in achieving this goal," said Hideki Ozawa, Chairman and CEO of Canon (China) Co., Ltd., in an interview with Global Times reporters. "Through this year's Spring Festival, we have once again seen the huge potential of the Chinese consumer market and the good momentum of China's accelerated economic recovery." Ma Mingbo, Chief Representative of the Shanghai Representative Office of the German Chamber of Commerce, told Global Times reporters that the ambitious growth target of around 5% set by the Chinese government, and German companies are very much looking forward to measures to stimulate demand in China, believing in the medium and long-term potential of the Chinese market. ".
"Honeywell continues to have a positive outlook on the long-term fundamentals of China's economic development and is steadfastly continuing to deeply cultivate the Chinese market." In an interview with Global Times reporters, Yu Feng, the President of Honeywell China, stated that as the country with the most complete industrial categories and supporting facilities under United Nations standards, China has a population of over 1.4 billion and a middle-income group of over 400 million, making it the world's second largest consumer market and the largest driving force for global economic growth.
Rio Tinto Group's Chief Business Officer, Bai Ruiming, believes that the Chinese economy has steadily recovered in the past two years and remains an important engine driving global economic growth. He said, "We believe that as the world's second-largest economy, China will continue to be a backbone of global manufacturing and trade development, and play an important stabilizing role in the global supply chain system."
"After more than 30 years of deep cultivation in China, we deeply feel that China has always adhered to its original intention of opening up to the outside world. Now, we are witnessing a new stage of China's expansion of high-level opening up to the outside world. This opening up not only enhances China's international competitiveness and influence, but also makes China demonstrate unparalleled attractiveness on the global stage." Xu Xinxiong, CEO of Tiansi Group, said in an interview with Global Times reporters.

The business environment is constantly optimizing, and foreign companies are taking a reassuring pill

The 2024 Chinese government work report mentioned that we will promote reform in key areas and key links, fully leverage the decisive role of the market in resource allocation, better leverage the role of the government, create a market-oriented, rule of law, and internationalized first-class business environment, and promote the construction of a high-level socialist market economy system.
The stable development of the Chinese economy is the cornerstone of the confidence of foreign enterprises in investing in China, and the continuously optimized business environment is the "reassuring pill" for foreign enterprises to deeply cultivate the Chinese market. Xiao Song, Global Executive Vice President of Siemens, Chairman and CEO of Siemens China, told Global Times reporters that he is pleased to see that the Chinese government has taken steps and focused measures to optimize the business environment in the past period of time. According to the roundtable on the implementation of the State Council's Opinions on Further Optimizing the Business Environment and Increasing the Attraction of Foreign Investment ("24 Articles of Foreign Investment") held by the Ministry of Commerce at the end of last month, more than 60% of policy measures have been implemented or have made positive progress. This result reflects China's efforts to continuously optimize the business environment and actively fulfill its commitment to high-level opening up to the outside world.
"When various market entities can fully compete, cooperate, and achieve mutual benefit in a large market, I believe that the Chinese market will unleash greater potential, which will also add confidence to enterprises and entrepreneurs." Xiao Song said.
In an interview with Global Times, President of the European Chamber of Commerce in China, Yan Ci, mentioned that if the "24 foreign investment regulations" can be fully implemented, it will greatly help restore China's attractiveness as an investment destination. The European Chamber of Commerce is working closely with China on this matter.
Xu Xinxiong stated that in recent years, the Chinese market has continued to deepen its opening-up to the outside world, and the business environment has been continuously optimized, making it a preferred destination for foreign investment. Nowadays, China will attract and utilize foreign investment to a greater extent, further implement the national treatment of foreign-funded enterprises, and provide good services for foreign-funded enterprises, so that investment enterprises in China, including Tiansi Group, can see the stronger potential of the Chinese market. "In the future, we believe that China's opening-up will show a trend of higher quality development, and more measures will be introduced to promote the optimization of the business environment."
Positive response to "new quality productivity"
This year's government work report proposes that "vigorously promoting the construction of a modern industrial system and accelerating the development of new quality productive forces" is one of the government's tasks for 2024. This is also the first time that "new quality productivity" has appeared in government work reports. This widely concerned concept has received positive responses from foreign companies.
Xu Baoping, Chairman of the Executive Board of Knorr Group in the Asia Pacific region, told Global Times reporters, "We are pleased to see that the 2024 Two Sessions prioritize 'new quality productivity' and emphasize building a new highland for opening up to the outside world. We firmly believe that this will provide broader development space for foreign enterprises." He said that in the future, Knorr Group will continue to increase investment in key technology research and development and localization capacity building, Building an innovative system based on China's local supply chain and striving to become a new model of cooperation in the manufacturing industry between China and Germany. With the deployment of accelerating the construction of a unified national market in 2024, we hope to work together with our Chinese partners to promote the high-quality and sustainable development of China's rail transit and commercial vehicle industries.
Xiao Song stated that new quality productivity is becoming a strong engine for China to fully promote high-quality economic development, which is highly in line with Siemens' strategy.
Yin, Executive Vice President of Schneider Electric and President of China and East Asia, stated in an interview with Global Times that China is currently promoting high-quality development and focusing on building new productive forces, which will create broader development space for China.
This year's government work report also proposes to strengthen the construction of ecological civilization and promote green and low-carbon development. The green and low-carbon economy has also received attention from many foreign enterprises. Anna, the President of Henkel Greater China, said in an interview with Global Times that "China's achievements in environmental protection and green and low-carbon development in the past few years have left a deep impression on us. China's pursuit of green development has also brought opportunities to foreign-funded enterprises like Henkel." Anna said that now, China is one of Henkel's main markets and plays a strategic role in its global business. With the continuous improvement of China's business environment and its opening up to the world at a high level, Hanhigh also continues to increase investment in China to enhance its end-to-end capabilities. "We are actively optimistic about the Chinese market and have confidence in its future."
"With the continuous introduction and implementation of various economic incentive measures, we feel that the Chinese economy is rebounding and improving." Hu Wentao, President of Wacker China, told Global Times reporters, especially in the context of China's high-quality development and "dual carbon" goals, we see that enterprises and markets that conform to the trend are emerging, such as new energy, artificial intelligence, green building materials, etc. These industries provide more and better market development and growth opportunities for multinational corporations, including Wacker.