China Direct

Construction starts on Airbus’ China A330 Widebody Completion and Delivery Centre in Tianjin

CBI member Airbus took additional steps in the expansion of its global footprint and its strategic partnership with China as construction got underway for the Airbus A330 Completion and Delivery Centre (C&DC) in Tianjin.

The A330 C&DC will be co-located at the same site as the Airbus Tianjin A320 Family Final Assembly Line and the Airbus Tianjin Delivery Centre. In the summer of 2014, Airbus, the Tianjin Free Trade Zone (TJFTZ) and Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) signed a framework agreement on setting up an A330 C&DC in Tianjin.

The A330 C&DC Tianjin will cover the aircraft completion activities, including cabin installation, aircraft painting and flight test, as well as aircraft delivery and customer flight acceptance. The A330 Family aircraft to be completed at the A330 C&DC Tianjin will be assembled in Toulouse while painting and cabin fitting will be performed in Tianjin.

Please read more here.

University of Nottingham and Tianjin University launch first U.K.-China joint pharmacy course

 

CBI member The University of Nottingham and Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TUTCM) announced that they are launching the first U.K.-China joint pharmacy course, starting in September.

The School of Pharmacy at Nottingham, ranked joint number one in the U.K. for research quality and eighth in the 2015 QS World Rankings for Pharmacy and Pharmacology, will run the new BSc in International Pharmacy, with TUTCM, a top 10 institution in its field.

The five-year course has been developed to create highly-qualified hospital pharmacists for China and to help put pharmacy on an equal footing with other health professions. This is the first time a Chinese university has developed a course of this kind with a U.K. university.

There will be agreed curriculum criteria and standards between both institutions and all pharmacy teaching and exams will be in English—a first for TUTCM. At the end of the five-year programme, students will receive a Bachelor of Science from TUTCM.

The new course, approved by China’s Ministry of Education, will recruit up to 30 high-quality applicants who will come to Nottingham in 2017 for their third and fourth years. Students will spend years one, two, and five at TUTCM, with their final year in China taking place in a hospital environment.

While in the U.K., students will complete their BSc in International Pharmacy and will gain a western perspective on medicine and drugs, clinical and commercial knowledge, and patient safety from Nottingham experts.

CBI Member China Round-Up. Jan 2015

CBI member Jaguar Land Rover announced that it had achieved a solid sales performance in 2014, retailing 462,678 vehicles, up 9% compared to the previous year.

This is the company’s fifth successive year of growth in sales. Jaguar Land Rover’s global performance for the full year shows a balanced portfolio with sales up across all key regions: 122,010 in the China Region, up 28%; 96,505 for Overseas, up 1%; 86,310 in Europe, up 3%; 82,872 in the U.K., up 7%, and 74,981 in North America, up 2%.

Land Rover had its best ever year with sales reaching 381,108, up 9% year-on-year. The company sold more Range Rovers, Range Rover Sports, and Range Rover Evoques in 2014 than ever before, on the back of continued strong customer demand.

Jaguar sales were up 6% for the year, retailing 81,570 vehicles. The F-TYPE, which has just completed its first full year of sales, continues to raise brand awareness around the world. The XF consistently drives Jaguar volumes and in 2014 has recorded its best year of sales to date.

This is Jaguar’s strongest full year performance in nearly a decade. It has also been a historic year for manufacturing, with the business expanding from three plants to five. Jaguar Land Rover opened its first ever overseas manufacturing plant, in China, as well as a new Engine Manufacturing Centre in the West Midlands.

Please read more here.

China Aircraft Leasing Company firms up its contract with Airbus for 100 A320 Family aircraft

CBI member Airbus announced that China Aircraft Leasing Company (CALC), China’s leading independent aircraft operating lessor, had firmed up its contract in December 2014 with Airbus for 100 A320 Family aircraft. The order comprises 74 A320neo, 16 A320ceo, and 10 A321ceo. Including this new order, CALC’s total backlog with Airbus stands at 140 A320 Family aircraft.

Please read more here.

British Airways unveils special offers for its Club World business class

CBI member British Airways unveiled special offers for its Club World business class, with fares starting at RMB 18,000 from Chengdu, RMB 20,000 from Shanghai, and RMB 24,800 from Beijing. The limited time offer, available on ba.com from now until 18 February 2015, is valid for outbound travel before 19 June 2015.

Richard Tams, British Airways Executive Vice President, China, said, “London is one of the world’s great shopping capitals, therefore it’s not surprising that a number of our customers from China go there for truly unique and memorable shopping experiences. Our special Club World fares enable shopping lovers to not only fly to London in award-winning style, but to also take advantage of the great savings to bring back an indulgent memento or two.”

Heathrow Airport Limited reports passenger volumes increase 15.1% to China in December

CBI member Heathrow Airport Limited released its traffic results for December 2014, reporting passenger volumes continued growth within emerging markets, increasing 15.1% to China, 10.9% to Mexico, and 4% to the Middle East and Central Asia.

Please read more here.

CBI Member Successes in China - Snapshot of Year of the The Horse

 

Dear CBI members and strategic partners,

China Direct would like to share with you a snapshot of CBI members' successes in China through 2014. We hope that you found our new format easy to use, visual and informative and wish you all every success for the forthcoming year of the sheep.

Please do keep sending us your updates and press releases so that your business can also be highlighted in 2015.

Thank you.

Download CBI Beijing, Member Milestones in China, 2014

Huawei celebrates opening of new U.K. headquarters in Green Park, Reading

 

Huawei recently celebrated the opening of its new U.K. headquarters in Green Park in Reading. 

The move reaffirms Huawei's long-term commitment to the U.K., and is the first significant milestone in the company's pledge to invest £1.3 billion into the economy over a five-year period. The new 140,000 square foot complex will house Huawei's main U.K. operation, and will help meet the future needs of the company's growing workforce.

Mark Hoban, U.K. Employment Minister, said, "This is a significant investment in the U.K., which shows that we are open for business. This Government is committed to doing all that we can to help people achieve their aspiration of looking after themselves and their families, and this investment will bring a welcome jobs boost for the region."

Alok Sharma, MP for Reading West, said, "I am very pleased Huawei has selected Reading and Green Park as the location of its new headquarters. Green Park is at the heart of the 'M4 corridor', the centre of Britain's Information, Communication, and Technology sectors, it has a highly skilled local workforce with unrivalled transport links. I look forward to working with Huawei as it settles into its new U.K. home."

Cathy Meng, Executive Director of the Board and Chief Financial Officer, Huawei Technologies, said, "Today's move marks the beginning of an exciting new period of development for Huawei U.K.

The U.K. is an innovation hub, and is already playing a key role in the global digital economy. Huawei is grateful to all of our customers and partners, as well as the British Government, for their continued trust and support. We are greatly encouraged by the British government's positive approach towards overseas investment, and we are on-track to fulfill our long-term commitment to the U.K."

Please click here to read the full press release by Huawei.

CBI member INEOS signs joint venture plant deal with Tianjin

 

 

CBI member INEOS recently announced that INEOS Nitriles and Tianjin Bohai Chemical Industry Group Corporation signed a non-binding Head of Terms, setting out their intention to establish a 50/50

joint venture to build an Acrylonitrile plant in the Tianjin Chemical Industrial Park in Tianjin.

The initial annual capacity of the new facility will be 260,000 tonnes of Acrylonitrile with an expectation of possible future expansion in line with growing demand across Asia.

The plant is expected to be completed by the end of 2016. The final agreement is subject to confirmation of satisfactory project costs and the conclusion of discussions with the local authorities.

Jim Ratcliffe, Chairman of INEOS, said, "This is the second Joint Venture project INEOS has announced in China this year. In March, INEOS Phenol initialed a joint venture agreement with Sinopec YPC for the design, build, and operation of a 1.2 million tonne cumene, phenol, and acetone complex at
Nanjing. Both Joint Ventures bring together our world leading technology with a strong Chinese partner. They will add up to a total investment across all partners of more than US$1 billion."


Please click here to read the full press release by INEOS.

 

Coming to a screen near you - Pinewood Studios announces major China expansion

CBI member Pinewood Shepperton recently announced that it has entered into a 50:50 joint venture agreement with Seven Stars Media Ltd., one of the largest and fastest growing media conglomerates in China.

The joint venture, to be called "Song Lin", initially will assess a number of business proposals in China's growing entertainment market. Under the terms of the joint venture, Pinewood will provide its expertise with limited capital investment.

The proposals include:

• Providing co-production opportunities for film and television producers

• The creation of film and television diploma courses to be delivered by U.K. educational institutions in Beijing, Tianjin, and four other cities

• Developing production financing and related services for Chinese film and television productions

• A series of film themed entertainment venues in Shanghai and regionally

• Creating film themed projects in Beijing, Shanghai, and Wuhan

U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron said, "It's great to see Pinewood Studios expanding its business with the announcement of its joint venture with Seven Stars Media. The creative industries are a rapidly growing area of China's economy and will increasingly provide huge opportunities for U.K. companies
competing in the global race.

Pinewood is leading the way, taking advantage of China's thriving entertainment and media sector and building on Britain and China's growing trade relationship."

Ivan Dunleavy, CEO of Pinewood, said, "The Chinese market for content is the fastest growing in the world and taking Pinewood's experience and skills to that market in partnership with such an established and successful local partner is a truly exciting prospect. The joint venture brings together two companies with significant experience and will provide a conduit for film and television productions to maximise their impact in China. The partnership with Seven Stars, under Bruno Wu's direction, represents a strategic step forward for Pinewood's international development. If successful, the joint venture could provide significant opportunities for U.K. film and television producers."

Bruno Wu, Chairman and CEO of Seven Stars, said, "Together with Pinewood, we have identified a significant number of business opportunities for the short, medium, and long term. The joint venture will aim to improve the standard of media production, create co-production opportunities for Chinese
producers, and export Chinese film and television content overseas.

Our local knowledge and scale combined with Pinewood's unique operational skills and
international reputation will enable our joint venture to participate in China's content explosion."

Please click here to read the full press release by Pinewood.

Protecting your IP in China - free events and information for your 2013 SME diary

 

 

Dear CBI members,

A very happy 2013 to you from China Direct.

If you are an SME and would like some free, up-to-date information on how to protect your Intellectual Property Rights in China then why not get in touch with the China IPR SME Helpdesk?

This free and confidential service for European SMEs has recently released an overview of its 2012 activities which include training events (in both China and Europe), webinars and online guides.

Of particular interest may be the 20th Jan event in Koln on IP Protection or the  24th January event in Beijing "Using Contracts to protect your business in China".

The China IPR SME Helpdesk recently released an overview of its activities in 2012, which included:


• Publishing six new guides

• Updating three existing guides

• Releasing three E-learning modules and four videos

• Conducting 32 training events in Europe, 33 in China, and 11 webinars

• Launching its blog China IP Insider


Upcoming training events include:

• 14 January, Munich: Aviation Industry IPR Seminar (*Date TBC)

• 20 January, Cologne: IPR Protection Seminar

• 24 January, Beijing: Using Contracts to Protect Your Business in China

• 26 February, Beijing: Key IPR Challenges in 2013

• 26 March, Tianjin: What's in a Name? – Branding and Trade Mark Protection

The Helpdesk also provides a series of 30-minute, interactive E-learning Modules, which address various aspects of China IPR and how they are relevant to European businesses.

Please click here to access the modules.

Shell to open new lubricants plant in Tianjin

 

[Image courtesy of www.shell.com]

CBI member Shell recently announced plans to build a new lubricants blending plant in Tianjin, which will be the company's seventh blending plant in mainland China.

The plant will be well-situated to supply a range of lubricants products to northern China. With an initial production capacity of 300 million litres per year, the plant will have the potential to expand to 500 million litres per year.

Mark Gainsborough, Executive Vice President, Shell Global Commercial, said, "We are delighted to confirm this significant new investment in our supply chain in China, which is the fastest growing lubricants market globally. Supply chain is the foundation for the consistent delivery of our high-quality lubricants products, such as Shell Helix, Shell Advance, Shell Rimula, Shell Tellus, and Shell Omala. We are well-positioned to meet the future needs of lubricants customers in Asia, to sustain our leading market position, and to realise our growth plans."

Please click here to read the full press release by Shell.

EUCCC annual European Business position paper launched in China

 

[Image courtesy of www.europeanchamber.com.cn]

Late last week The European Union Chamber of Commerce in China (EUCCC) released its European Business in China Position Paper 2012/2013.

The Position Paper intends to provide an overview of the current conditions in various sectors in China as well as detailed and constructive recommendations.

The 13th edition of the Position Paper was prepared through a six-month consultative process with hundreds of companies and includes 41 separate Working Group and Forum papers and eight city-specific papers covering Beijing, Chengdu, Chongqing, Nanjing, Pearl River Delta, Shanghai, Shenyang, and Tianjin).

Sectors covered include:

     • Aerospace
     • Agriculture, food, and beverages
     • Automotive
     • Auto components
     • Aviation
     • Banking and securities
     • Carbon market
     • Construction
     • Consumer finance and non-banking financial institutions
     • Cosmetics
     • Energy
     • Healthcare equipment
     • Heating
     • Information and communication technology
     • Information security industry
     • Insurance
     • Lighting
     • Logistics
     • Maritime transport
     • Non-ferrous metals
     • Petrochemicals, chemicals, and refining
     • Pharmaceutical
     • Private equity and strategic mergers & acquisitions
     • Rail
     • Renewable energy
     • Smart grid

Please click here to access the Executive Summary of the Position Paper and here for the full publication.