China Direct

China Data Crunch: 2021 China Provincial GDP/GDP per Capita and Country Equivalents

Dear CBI Members and Partners,

The team at the British Consulate in Guangzhou (Guangdong) have pulled together a fascinating infographic that shows China's provincial GDP and their international equivalents.

For instance, Shanghai's GDP is equivalent to that of Poland whilst Guangdong's is to that of Canada's. Do have a look at the graphic below which shows both provincial GDP and GDP per capita alongside their country/regional equivalents.

If you have further questions please reach out to: [email protected].

Download 2021 China GDP and Country Equivalents

Our thanks to the British Embassy (Beijing) and British Consulate in Guangzhou for kindly sharing these insights.

 

Dates for Diaries: 16 & 20 April - 129th Canton Fair Online B2B Matchmaking

 

Dear CBI Members and Partners,

Kindly find information below regarding the 129th Canton Fair and online B2B Matchmaking Events hosted by Zhejiang's Department of Commerce.

There are two Zoom Events scheduled for 16 & 20 April respectively. If your business wants to get involved please refer to the flyer below and sign up accordingly.

Thank you for your attention and our sincere thanks to Zhejiang's Commerce Department and the Canton Fair organisers for sharing.

Download The 129th Canton Fair B2B Online Matchmaking for Leading Export Companies of Zhejiang Province

 

If you have any questions then please do not hesitate to contact Ms. Peggy Lyu below:

Peggy Lyu 吕佩琦

M:+86 13710194270

E-mail: [email protected]

Web: www.pdc.org.cn

 

127th Session of the Canton Trade Fair - Online from 15-24 June

 

The 127th session of the China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, will be held online from June 15-24.

The Canton Fair will provide around-the-clock online services for product promotion, matchmaking and business negotiations, enabling both Chinese and International businesses to place orders remotely.

Download Welcome to the 127th session of Canton Fair

For more information please visit: www.cantonfair.org.cn ; www.cftc.org.cn

Many thanks.

CHINA DIRECT

British Business Awards 2020 - applications open now!

 

We are delighted to announce that the British Business Awards 2020 website (www.britishbusinessawards.cn) is now live and online applications open. 

Established in 2008 and now in its twelfth year, the biennial British Business Awards (BBA) recognises and promotes excellence in innovation, enterprise, and endeavour, in the British and Chinese business communities. The British Chamber of Commerce Shanghai is excited to be hosting BBA 2020 in Shanghai.

Over the past decade, BBA in China has grown to become a prestigious feature of the business calendar. BBA 2020 consists of nine categories which showcase a number of organisations and individuals who have demonstrated a commitment to trade and investment in China. These awards are:

·    Innovation Award (Sponsored by bp)

·    Sustainability Award (Sponsored by Houghton Street Consulting)

·    Entrepreneur of the Year Award (Sponsored by The British Chamber of Commerce Shanghai)

·    Chinese Investor in the UK Award

·    British Exporter of the Year Award (Sponsored by CBBC)

·    Leadership Award (Sponsored by The University of Manchester China Centre)

·    Best Employer Award (Sponsored by Smith+Nephew)

·    Best Services Award (Sponsored by KPMG China)

·    British Company of the Year Award (Sponsored by SpiraxSarco)

 

Key Dates of BBA 2020

·    Wednesday, 27 May: Official Website Launch & Online Applications

·    Thursday, 11 June: Official Launch Event

·    Friday, 31 July: Applications Close

·    Thursday, 3 September: Finalists Announcement

·    Thursday, 29 October: Awards Gala Dinner

For more details about each award and its criteria, please click here. To apply for the awards, please click here to register an account first or find your old account back.

BBA 2020 is supported by Department for International Trade (DIT), China-Britain Business Council (CBBC), The British Council, Confederation of British Industry (CBI), and British Chambers in Beijing, Guangdong and Southwest.

If you have any questions, please contact [email protected].

British Airways flying to more Chinese destinations with China Southern

 

CBI member, British Airways has announced that it has expanded its code-sharing deal with China Southern Airlines. The pair, which have had a code-sharing deal since 2017, will now code-share on all direct flights operated between London and the Chinese cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Sanya, Wuhan and Zhengzhou.

The two carriers said at a press conference on Tuesday that their new business agreement would enable them to cooperate more on scheduling and pricing, open up more destinations between the two countries and develop a combined route network from Beijing’s new airport.

Alex Cruz, chairman and CEO of British Airways, said: “We are delighted to announce this joint business which will bring the UK and China closer together by providing British Airways and China Southern Airlines customers with a range of benefits. […]The agreement reinforces [British Airways’] commitment to boost tourism and business travel between the two countries and we look forward to strengthening the relationship further.”

BP partners with DiDi to charge China’s new energy vehicle network

 

CBI member, BP has announced that it will enter into a joint venture with China’s leading ride hailing service provider, DiDi. The joint venture company will focus on developing new energy vehicle charging infrastructure across China to cater to the country’s developing NEV market.

Initially, the joint venture partnership will only focus on the installation and development of charging infrastructure. However, both companies have reported plans to extend the JV to include collaboration in areas such as loyalty programmes, convenience services and vehicle maintenance.

Yang Xiaoping, Chairwoman and President of BP China said: “China has provided tremendous growth opportunity for BP. Through cooperating with DiDi, BP will be able to actively provide differentiated products to cater to China’s fast-growing new energy vehicle charging market and further expand our brand presence in China.”

Fan Tu, CEO of BP’s downstream business said, “China is the world’s largest new energy vehicle market and presents tremendous opportunity for determining a business model that is both innovative and scalable. [BP] believes that entering into a joint venture with DiDi is the right way to respond to this fast-changing market. Moreover, by being in partnership with DiDi, BP will be to further expand its advanced mobile travel business globally, promoting energy transformation and low carbon solutions across the world.”

BP’s first NEV charging station has already been installed in Guangzhou in Guangdong Province and has the capability to charge 10 cars simultaneously on currents ranging between 60-100kw. It will subsequently be re-branded in light of the JV and serve as a model for the company’s expansion across China.

 

ABB to open Greater Bay Area (GBA) Innovation Centre

 

CBI member, ABB has announced plans to open a new innovation centre in Shenzhen, Guangdong province. The new centre, which will be situated within the main innovation hub of China’s new Greater Bay Area initiative, will open in the second half of this year to provide local solutions for smart building development.

Oliver Iltisberger, managing director of ABB Smart Buildings said, “As China is seeking new ways to promote energy efficiency and minimise carbon emissions to design healthier environments in its cities, ABB is now experiencing fast growth in the areas of intelligent building and related electrical businesses.”

The launch of the new innovation centre is a direct result of the group’s restructuring in 2018, where ABB decided to focus its business on four areas – electrification, industrial automation, motion, and robotics and discrete automation.

The company has been keen to promote its services in China, and opened a new customer experience centre in Beijing on Monday, to highlight the potential for development of smart cities with infrastructure upgrades, carbon free transportation and energy saving.

ABB becomes the latest in a long line of CBI members to have made announcements relating to investment in the Greater Bay Area. To find out more about opportunities for foreign businesses in the area, please follow the link.

Greater Bay Area - opportunities for UK Plc

Dear CBI Members and partners,

Kindly find a short overview of the Greater Bay Area and opportunities for UK business.

Download (4) 23 2019 - Greater Bay Area Opportunities Briefing_

Intesa Sanpaolo 'Greater Bay Area Innovation Road' highlights European business opportunities

 

The Italian banking group, Intesa Sanpaolo has launched its Greater Bay Innovation Road initiative in partnership with fellow CBI member, Deloitte. The mission aims to partner 14 Italian technology companies that are focussed on promoting internationalisation and innovation with Chinese partners operating within the “Chinese Silicon Valley” in Guangdong province.

The Greater Bay Area Innovation Road initiative (GBA) is the latest in a series of collaborative projects involving China and European partners. On the bilateral level, China is already working with Germany, France and the UK through a series of ‘CEO Councils’ to create new synergies between companies with the potential to deliver domestic infrastructural development through business to business engagement. The CBI serves as the Secretariat of the UK CEO Council, which recently entered its second year.

The Intesa Sanpaolo GBA presents another example that is illustrative of the point that China is taking steps to demonstrate its commitment to engaging with foreign partners to bring about market access reform and opening up. Furthermore, with the Italian Intesa Sanpaolo GBA focussed on connecting companies aiming to develop financial and technological partnerships, the German CEO Council focused on commodities and heavy industry, and the UK’s own CEO Council featuring companies predominantly drawn from the manufacturing and financial services sectors, it is clear to see that China is interested in engaging with Europe across a wide-range of sectors and ambitious regarding the width and breadth of its participation in the European markets.

Moreover, the Intesa Sanpaolo GBA initiative presents a good case example for companies based in the UK and European 3^rd markets trying to gauge China’s appetite for collaboration.

The Italian delegation features companies operating in a variety of sectors, including artificial intelligence, bio-technologies and component and semi-conducting manufacturing and assembly. The delegation will meet with 81 top-ranking Chinese companies to participate in talks and receive training on best practise when investing into China and Italy and carrying out research & development. The fact that for every individual Italian member company, China is interested in promoting five demonstrates clearly the appetite in the Mainland to engage with the European business community.

China’s Greater Bay Area has become a hot-spot for European investment in China in recent years, and UK companies are particularly well positioned to benefit. This is because the Bay Area is a start point of the Belt & Road Initiative, with the UK serving as one of the BRI’s end-points.

UK – China success stories are already emerging from the Bay Area. CBI member, Clifford Chance recently reported that it had advised Bank of China on a $1.83 billion bond deal in support of the Greater Bay Area’s infrastructural development. Engineering consultants, Arup are at forefront in providing solutions for infrastructure management, and recently delivered a major overhaul of Hong Kong’s sewage system. Small and medium sized companies are reporting success within the Bay too. Nottingham-based signage manufacturer and CBI member, Pearce Signs opened an office in Hong Kong in the August of 2018 and has successfully added Asia to its portfolio.

What examples such as the Intesa Sanpaolo Greater Bay Area initiative show is that big business to small, Chinese companies are looking to engage with European – and by extension – British businesses. Please find below some helpful links from organisations which work closely with the CBI’s office in Beijing on how UK companies can engage with the Greater Bay Area and the Belt & Road Initiative.

To read more about Intesa Sanpaolo’s Greater Bay Road Initiative, click here.

China – Britain Business Council – Belt & Road Case Studies Report

The EU SME Centre – Belt & Road Opportunities and Challenges

 

JLR drives I-Pace brand in China

CBI member, Jaguar Land Rover handed over the keys to the first Jaguar I-Pace sold in China last week, at a launch event held in conjunction with the Guangzhou International Automobile Exhibition.

JLR launched the car to much fanfare and announced that the I-Pace launch was the start of a new campaign aimed at re-invigorating the JLR brand within the China market.

JLR have taken a two-pronged approach to marketing the I-Pace, and announced a new collaborative project aimed at improving the company’s satellite navigation offerings as well as a new racing series featuring the I-Pace car.

The British car manufacturer will collaborate with the China Tourism Association, the Geographical Society of China, Chinese National Geography and Baidu to launch ‘Land Rover Road Trip Ratings,’ a new satellite navigation system which will be incorporated into JLR vehicles.

JLR hopes that collaboration with these organisations will help it develop enhanced intelligent navigation services for use in its cars sold into the China Market. The system will provide drivers with alternative routes which are practical, scenic and fun to drive. JLR hope that the system will become the market leader in China and enhance the distinctive brand experience and appeal.

The second step the company has taken to enhance its brand and broaden appeal is to launch a new racing series featuring the I-Pace car.

At the same event in Guangzhou, JLR announced the launch of the Asia I-Pace trophy, featuring Chinese race drivers, Wang Tao and Zhang Yaqi.

The Jaguar I-Pace Trophy will be the world’s first championship for mass-produced all-electric cars and will serve as an official supporting race of the Formula E Championship.

JLR plans to use the series as a way of promoting the brand in China, and spectators will be able to see the Jaguar I-Pace Trophy cars in action at the Chinese Sanya Grand Prix and the Hong Kong Grand Prix; both in March 2019.

The series is also sponsored by JLR’s navigation partners, Baidu.

According to JLR’s marketing executive vice president, Paul Hu, “JLR’s taking the lead in cooperation with Formula E proves that the British premium automobile brand owns cutting-edge electrification technologies and forward-looking strategies […] the unfolding of the Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy Championship will be a good chance to popularize the Jaguar I-Pace in China.”

JLR has started to sell the I-Pace in 29 cities across China and plans to roll it out across all 224 dealerships in the country.