Zhang Xiaoqiang: Speech at the Banquet of the China-Britain Business Council

Delivered by Zhang Xiaoqiang, CCIEE Executive Vice Chairman and Director of CCIEE Executive Board

Dear Lord Sassoon,

Dear Sir Sherard,

Dear friends,

Good evening! It is a pleasure to attend today’s dinner. This year marks the 65th anniversary of China-UK diplomatic relationship at the chargé d’affaires level. Over the past 65 years, the China-Britain Business Council(CBBC) and its predecessor have made outstanding contributions to the development of China-UK economic and trade relations. I would like to take this opportunity to share three points with you on strengthening China-UK economic and trade relations and deepening cooperation in the building of the “Belt and Road”.

First, the economic and trade cooperation between the two countries has achieved sustained, stable and healthy development under the guidance of the enhanced version of the “Golden Age” of China-UK relations.

During President Xi Jinping’s visit to the United Kingdom in October 2015, the leaders of the two countries upgraded the China-UK relations to a global comprehensive strategic partnership for the 21st century, opening a “golden age” for building a lasting, open and win-win China-UK relation. In early 2018, Prime Minister Theresa May visited China, and the Chinese and British governments reached a consensus on jointly building an enhanced version of the “Golden Age” China-UK relations.

Guided by the consensus of the two governments, the industries of the two countries have strengthened cooperation to promote the healthy and stable development of economic and trade relations. In 2018, the bilateral trade volume between China and Britain has reached US $80.4 billion. In the past 10 years, British exports to China have tripled. From the perspective of investment, China’s foreign investment from the United Kingdom in 2018 was 2.48 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 150%, the highest level since 1997. In 2018, the cumulative direct investment of Chinese companies in the UK reached 19.88 billion US dollars, and more than 500 companies were established. The UK has become China’s second-largest investment destination in the EU.

The cooperation between the two countries has brought development opportunities and growth for enterprises on both sides, created employment opportunities, improved the welfare of the people, and achieved mutual benefit and win-win results.

Second, China and the UK still have a huge space for economic and trade cooperation under the new situation. In recent years, global trade protectionism has risen markedly, a wave of anti-globalization has intensified, the United States has provoked economic and trade frictions against China, and uncertainties about global economic growth have increased. The ups and downs of Brexit have a great impact on the British economy. All these changes have made the economic and trade cooperation between China and the UK more important than before. Both sides have already established smooth channels of cooperation through the China-UK Economic and Trade Dialogue, and the China-UK Joint Commission on Economics and Trade. The industries of the two countries are looking for cooperation opportunities through various platforms. From January to September this year, the trade volume between the two countries reached US $63.7 billion, an increase of 8.4% year-on-year, showing a relatively strong growth momentum.

At present, China and the UK have huge potential for cooperation and development in areas such as nuclear power, high-speed rail, automobile manufacturing, green energy, 5G, digital economy, finance, education, and medical care. At the same time, China and the UK should speed up the China-UK FTA negotiations to institutionalize bilateral economic and trade cooperation.

I also want to emphasize that China has always attached importance to create a superior and excellent investment environment for foreign investors. On November 1 this year, relevant government departments of China promulgated the Regulations for the Implementation of the Foreign Investment Law of the People’s Republic of China (Draft for Soliciting Opinions), with the aim of bringing new reforms to investment promotion and protection, and addressing core concerns of foreign investors. The “Global Business Environment Report” released by the World Bank shows that improved China’s business environment ranked 31st. China welcomes British companies to invest in China and it also hopes that the UK will treat Chinese companies without discrimination, adhere to the principles of non-discrimination and transparency, and provide a fair and sound investment environment.

Third, China and the UK should continue to deepen their cooperation under the “Belt and Road” initiative. Nearly 600 pragmatic results have been made since the proposal of the “Belt and Road” initiative, which has injected new impetus into the economic growth of countries along the route. The “Belt and Road” initiative welcomes all the countries to take part. British companies can cooperate with Chinese companies to seek development opportunities in third-party markets along the “Belt and Road”. They could also maximize their strengths in commercial services, green finance, environmental protection and other fields, and expand the scope of cooperation to achieve a win-win outcome.

Finally, I hope that everyone will work together to promote more “golden fruits” in the “golden age” of the China-UK relations!

Thank you!