China Direct

UK and China celebrate 40 years of diplomatic relations 1972-2012

 

 


On 13 March 2012, China and the U.K. celebrated 40 years of diplomatic relations at the Ambassadorial level. 

Over the past four decades, cooperation between the two countries has flourished in many areas, including trade and investment, education, culture, science and technology, sports, tourism, and sustainable development.

Impressive figures include:

     • In 1972, the UK received only 200 Chinese students while China received 100 British students. 
       Today, there are over 100,000 Chinese students in the U.K., more than any other foreign student 
       group, and there are 3,300 British students in China.

     • There are now 19 Confucius Institutes and 60 Confucius classrooms in the U.K.

     • In 2010, more than 575,000 British nationals visited China, and nearly 130,000 Chinese tourists 
       visited the U.K.

     • The U.K. ranked as China's top source of foreign direct investment (FDI) among E.U. countries in 
       2010 and between January and August in 2011. China's investment in the U.K. has grown from 
       almost none in 1972 to more than $2.3 billion now.

     • Bilateral trade has increased from $300 million in 1972 to $58.7 billion today.

     • China co-authors more scientific research papers with the U.K. than with any other country other 
       than the U.S. and Japan.

The 40th anniversary is one of a number of landmark events in 2012, which highlight the strengthening relationship between China and the U.K. Following the spectacular Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, London will host the Olympic Games this year between July and September. The U.K. looks forward to welcoming the Chinese delegation, the largest of any competing nation. 

In addition, U.K. Now, the largest British arts festival in China ever, will be held between April and November this year, bringing more than 100 U.K. cultural events to 17 cities across China.

In an interview with Xinhua, Liu Xiaoming, China's Ambassador to the U.K., said, "I am glad to note that the 40th anniversary of China-U.K. full diplomatic relations has coincided with the 60 years of the British Queen's reign and the London Olympics. I am confident about the future of China-U.K. relations."

In a speech at the Chinese Embassy in the U.K., Ambassador Liu also said, "We have every reason to be confident because of the huge potential for cooperation in all fields. Our economies are highly complementary. We are both engaged in restructuring our economies. This has created enormous opportunities for bilateral trade and investment. Our commitment to expanding people-to-people links will also boost our cooperation in education, culture, science, and technology."

Sebastian Wood, Britain's Ambassador to China, said, "The U.K.-China relationship continues to become both stronger and deeper with every passing year. In our anniversary year, I express my warmest wishes to the Chinese people. The British Government is determined to further develop the extensive political, business, cultural, and educational links between our two nations."

Please click here, here, and here for additional media coverage on China and the U.K. celebrating 40 years of full diplomatic relations and here to access the full speech by Ambassador Liu.  

Blame it on Rio - CBI member HSBC takes Chinese investors to Brazil

 

CBI member HSBC led a business delegation of major Chinese companies to Brazil for a five-day visit in December last year. HSBC plays a significant role in facilitating the rise of trade and investment flows between China and Latin America, two of the world's fastest-growing emerging market regions.

The delegation, consisting of senior executives from both private and state-owned Chinese companies in energy, resources, motorcycles, construction, and other industries, met with local  entrepreneurs and potential business partners to gain insights into Brazil's and Latin America's economic and business environments.

In 2010, HSBC launched a China Desk in Brazil, which is managed by experienced bankers seconded from China to provide on-the-ground support for Chinese companies expanding in Latin America. HSBC also has a Latin America Desk in China, which is managed by seasoned bankers from HSBC Brazil and provides support for companies from Latin America doing business in China and Chinese companies looking to do business in Latin America.

Montgomery Ho, Managing Director and Head of Commercial Banking at HSBC China, said, "While South-South trade is set to become a mainstay and key driver of the global economy, China and Brazil, as well as other Latin America markets, are leading the way with strong domestic growth and increasing bilateral trade and investments. Today, we connect Chinese corporates with Brazil's business community and facilitate their dialogues to help them understand each other’s markets and explore business opportunities. This is a very good demonstration of how HSBC leverages our global connectivity to help our customers capitalise on cross-border trade and investment flows."

Magnus Montan, Head of International Business at HSBC China, said, "Closer economic ties have been generating stronger needs worldwide for cross-border financial services in the past decades. Looking forward, we expect Chinese companies to continue to expand their footprint across global markets and Latin American companies to have greater appetite for doing business with China.

HSBC is the largest foreign bank in China and one of the leading international banks in Latin America. Our strong presence and local knowledge in both China and Latin America position us in a central role in assisting companies' growing trade and investment flows between the world's two rising economic powerhouses through our global connectivity and international banking services, including RMB trade services."

Please click here for further information. 

 

Chinese investment into UK infrastructure " a win win" solution for all

 

 

China Investment Corporation (CIC), the country's main sovereign wealth fund, is keen to invest in the infrastructure of developed countries, particularly the UK.

Lou Jiwei, chairman and chief executive officer of CIC, recently wrote an article in the Financial Times in which he emphasised the interest of CIC in participating in the upgrading of the UK's infrastructure.

According to Mr. Lou, CIC, "is keen to team up with fund managers or participate in public-private-partnerships (PPP) in the UK infrastructure sector as an equity investor." 

Mr. Lou went on to note that, "CIC believes that such an investment, guided by commercial principles, offers the chance of a 'win-win' solution for all."

The UK government is increasingly looking to upgrade the country's infrastructure in a bid to boost economic growth, and Chinese investment could play an important role in helping achieve such aims.  In October, UK Prime Minister David Cameron pledged an "all-out" mission to help launch infrastructure projects.

Please read more here and here.  

CBI Director General upbeat about UK-China trade prospects

[Image courtesy of www.cbi.org.uk]

CBI Director General John Cridland CBE was interviewed by the Global Times during his recent visit to China.

Despite the challenging economic environment there are huge opportunities for UK business to increase its trade with China.

John Cridland shares his thoughts on UK business in China, opportunities for Chinese Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to the UK and highlights the outstanding success of CBI members Intercontinental Hotels Group and Jaguar Land Rover in China.

Please click here for the interview, published today in the Global Times newspaper.

 

 

   

US Budget Control Act 2011 - implications for business

 

 
[Image courtesy of www.cbi.org.uk]

Please refer to the following commentary from our CBI Washington DC office of the recent US budget crisis and US Budget Control Act 2011.

Kindly contact our US office directly via rhian.chilcott@cbi.org.uk or matt.bricken@cbi.org.uk for further comment or opinion.

 Download CBI US Budget Brief Aug 11

Chengdu city - Living in the West?

 

 
[Image courtesy of www.besteducationinchina.com]

Chengdu City - Living in the West?

A fertile business environment with the Sichuanese talent for good living is helping Chengdu to become a more attractive option for both investors and employees.

Chengdu, capital city of Sichuan province in SW China, is often regarded as one of the most attractive and liveable cities in China for Chinese and foreign businessmen and expatriates alike.

For an update on what Chengdu can offer your business - and family - please read on below.

Download Chengdu City - Overview July 2011

China Direct would like to thank both Shanghai Business Review and Ms. Kirsten Allen for sharing this article.

The Chinese Communist Party 1921-2011

 
[Image courtesy of www.bbc.co.uk]

Today, China is holding a grand gathering ceremony to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. 

Chinese President Hu Jintao delivered the keynote address at the grand gathering, highlighting the major accomplishments of the Party over its long history.

Please click here to read more about President Hu's speech.

The CPC has seen its membership grow spectacularly during its 90-year history, and the CPC now stands as the largest political party in the world. At its founding in 1921, the Party had only 50 members, but that number had grown to 4.5 million when the People's Republic of China was founded in 1949. Wang Qinfeng, Vice-Minister of the Organisation Department of the CPC Central Committee, announced that the number of CPC members had surpassed 80 million by the end of 2010. More than three million people joined the Party last year.

Please click here to read more official coverage of the Party's 90th anniversary.

Kindly note that China Direct will be taking a break early next week returning Wed 06 July.

Finally China Direct would like to thank Ben Cooper, Policy Analyst, at CBI Beijing for preparing this note.

Chinese Premier Wen visit to the UK - the real deal

 

 

China and the UK signed trade deals worth £1.4 billion ($2.3 billion) during Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s three-day visit to the UK this week. 

Premier Wen's visit demonstrates the growing commitment of both China and the UK to continue deepening bilateral ties through engagement at the highest levels.

Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang visited the UK earlier this year in January while UK Prime Minister David Cameron led the largest ever British delegation to China last November.

Each of the three high-level visits in the past eight months have yielded impressive packages of new business deals.

CBI members were well-represented in the commercial agreements signed during Premier Wen’s visit this week. Highlights include:

CBI member BG Group signed an agreement with Bank of China for $1.5 billion of new funding options to support the UK company's global growth plans.

CBI member Diageo received approval from Chinese regulatory authorities in Beijing to acquire a majority stake in well-known Chinese liquor maker Shuijingfang.

CBI member Benoy announced four new contracts for infrastructure projects worth over £10 million for the British company

CBI member Arup signed an MOU on railway cooperation with China Railway Engineering Corporation.

CBI member Nottingham University signed an agreement with China Aviation Industry Corporation to establish a new R&D centre at the University of Nottingham.

CBI member University College London signed an MOU with leading Chinese ethanol producer Tianguan Group on the development of a biogas research facility near the city of Nanyang in central China's Henan Province.

Premier Wen's visit also yielded a number of important government-to-government agreements, including:

UK Trade & Investment and China's Ministry of Commerce signed an MOU on cooperation on investment promotion.

The agreement reflects the UK government's desire to support Chinese investment into priority asset classes, such as infrastructure, as part of the new UKTI strategy to encourage more innovative and high-growth foreign direct investment into the UK.

UK Trade & Investment and China's Ministry of Commerce signed an agreement on trade in services, which will help support increased exports of UK services to China. The UK enjoys particular expertise in the services sector, and the country's services exports to China have been growing at an average of 17-18% annually over the last decade.

Please read more about the outcomes of Premier Wen's visit to the UK here and here.

China Direct would like to thank Ben Cooper, CBI Policy Analyst, for this contribution.  

US-China Relations - May 2011 Strategic Economic Dialogue

 

 

 [Image courtesy of www.apcoworldwide.com]

CBI Member APCO has provided a useful summary of last week's 3rd US-China Strategic Economic Dialogue held in Washington DC from 09-10 May.

Kindly review the summary below.

Download APCO - US-CH SED May 2011

Tianjin city - flying high with CBI members Airbus, Thales and Goodrich

 
 
[Image courtesy of www.theuncarvedblog.wordpress.com]

China Direct paid a visit to the state-level development zone Tianjin Airport Economic Area (TAEA) in the northeastern city of Tianjin, meeting with CBI members Airbus, Thales and Goodrich.

Airbus has a final assembly line for its aircraft in Tianjin, the first to operate outside of Europe. Goodrich runs a maintenance, engine buildup and supply chain management office in Tianjin. Thales runs the Thales (Tianjin) Radar Technologies Co., Ltd. 

Growing by 17.4% last year, Tianjin is one of the fastest-growing cities in China, with the 5th busiest port in the world.

Pillar industries in the TAEA include aviation, logistics, manufacturing, automotive, electronics, finance, renewables and biopharmaceutical.

Offering companies access to competititve advantages such as an advantageous location, superb transportation links, highly-skilled human resources, a lower cost base, strong financial support, efficient business services, first-class infrastructure and a modern lifestyle, TAEA is a highly attractive destination for foreign investment in China.

Please click here to read a full presentation on the TAEA.