"Nobody wants to give up China's big market"


"Withdrawal from China? Where can I go? Sitting in a simple and practical office, Zhang Zhenwei, CEO of Kern-Liebers (Taicang) Co., Ltd., a German-funded company, asked reporters whether they would consider leaving China.


Taicang is only 50 kilometers from downtown Shanghai. In 1993, Kern Liebers, a manufacturer of auto parts, became the first German company in Taicang. Over the past 20 years, German SMEs, accustomed to group development, have settled down one after another. Today, 318 German-funded enterprises have been gathered in this small town in the south of the Yangtze River, and the number is still growing at a rate of about 30 per year.


Zhang Zhenwei, who joined Kern-Libers in 1995, also witnessed the development of Taicang Company from nine to more than 1000 people. With the rapid development of China's automotive industry, more than 90% of the factory's products are sold in China. More than 10 years ago, exports accounted for half of the total sales.


China's market is vast and its purchasing power is increasing day by day. Although the passenger car market has been under pressure in the past two years, Zhang Zhenwei is still confident about the future of China's automobile market.


"The growing demand for high-quality products in China calls for economic restructuring and industrial upgrading, which coincides with the concept of German manufacturing and is a good opportunity for German enterprises, so we never want to leave." Zhang Zhenwei said.


Recently, Xinhua News Agency's multi-channel economic grass-roots research team went to various places. In the investigation of the Yangtze River Delta region, many multinational enterprises have expressed similar views. Many enterprises are expanding their distribution in China to express their confidence rooted in China through practical actions.


In May this year, Taicang's largest German company, Schaeffler, signed a contract with the local government for electric drive and aviation components projects, with a total investment of $300 million.


Not long ago, Dow's China High Value-added Silicone Resin Factory held a foundation-laying ceremony in Zhangjiagang City, Jiangsu Province. Last year, the multinational giant headquartered in the United States opened its paint material factory in Chengdu, China, and its polyether polyol plant in Zhangjiagang.


"China is not only a strategic market and production R&D base, but also an important part of Dow's global supply chain." Dow CEO Jim Fittering said.


Under the "adverse wind" of trade protectionism, what journalists have seen and heard is a strong response to the argument that "foreign-funded enterprises have withdrawn from China one after another" for some time.


Data from the Ministry of Commerce show that from January to May this year, 16 460 foreign-invested enterprises were newly established in China, with the actual use of foreign capital of 369.06 billion yuan, an increase of 6.8% over the same period last year.


In the survey, many executives mentioned that China's strong domestic market makes it difficult for foreign investment to be cut off, and the complete industrial chain, increasingly optimized innovation environment and business environment are the deep driving force for foreign investment to further cultivate the Chinese market.


AstraZeneca, a London-based multinational pharmaceutical giant, entered China in 1993 with about 13,000 employees and nearly $3.8 billion in sales in China in 2018. As business continues to expand, AstraZeneca expects to add 3,000 jobs by the end of the year.


"There is still a lot of room for growth in China's health care. Nobody wants to give up the big market in China." "Our goal is to turn China into one of AstraZeneca's major global production bases," Wang Lei, AstraZeneca's executive vice president, told reporters.


Wang Lei, 47, suffered from asthma as a child. After Wang Lei entered AstraZeneca in 2013, he saw many asthma patients coming from other places in Shanghai hospitals, only because there was no atomization treatment room at the local grassroots level. In addition to his shock, Wang Lei cooperated with cross-border partners to build an intelligent atomization center based on Internet of Things technology to improve the conditions of primary medical institutions. At present, AstraZeneca has built more than 17,000 children's atomization rooms in the country.


This project is one of AstraZeneca's initiatives to integrate into China's development. Like many multinational companies, AstraZeneca hopes to build a whole-course solution based on big data, Internet of Things and artificial intelligence, not just pharmaceutical sales, with the help of China's innovative advantages.


"China has a prominent advantage in scientific and technological innovation, leading the world in the business innovation atmosphere, which is a good opportunity for foreign-funded enterprises to start a second venture in China." Wang Lei said.


In Fittering's view, the continuous promotion of urbanization in China and the deep-rooted concept of green development will bring great business opportunities to Dow.


"In the next 20 years, 300 million people are expected to live in cities. China needs to provide them with energy-saving and comfortable houses, advanced infrastructure, clean water and air. Dow's products fit these visions. Fittering said.


Reporters Zhang Yizhi, Wu Jialin and Chen Weiwei


Participating in the Collection and Writing: Pan Ye and He Xinrong


Editor: Zhang Yizhi, Wu Jialin, Chen Weiwei, Pan Ye, He Xin