1. LINE

      Text:AAAPrint
      Economy

      More EU firms forced to cut back in China: Chamber poll

      1
      2015-06-11 09:16Global Times Editor: Li Yan

      Firms look to smaller negative list for easier access to China market

      About one-third of European companies have decided to put expansion plans in China on hold amid concerns over the economic slowdown, up from one-fourth in 2014, a survey showed Wednesday.

      China's economic slowdown has "forced European businesses to cut back significantly," especially in terms of manpower, according to a survey jointly released by the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China and Roland Berger Strategy Consultants on Wednesday.

      The lackluster economic growth is considered the top challenge facing European companies in China, followed by rising labor costs, the survey said.

      The survey showed that 39 percent of the 541 companies surveyed are planning to cut costs in China to adjust to the downturn, up from 24 percent in 2014.

      European companies also feel less upbeat about their growth prospects in China, with only 58 percent of the respondents remaining optimistic, compared with 68 percent in 2014, according to the survey.

      To adapt to the slowdown, 31 percent of the companies have decided not to expand their China operations in response to the slowing growth, the survey said.

      The GDP growth rate of the world's second-largest economy has slowed to a six-year low of 7 percent in the first quarter. Despite the government's stimulus measures, the economy continues to face strong headwinds, experts said.

      "We don't see members leaving China … but they are considering other countries," Joerg Wuttke, the chamber's president, said at a press conference in Beijing on Wednesday, noting that China is too important in size for European companies and they are still committed to China.

      European firms are keen to cooperate with China in high-end manufacturing as the country seeks to upgrade the sector amid its "Made in China 2025" plan, Liu Wenbo, a senior partner at Roland Berger, told media on the sidelines of the press conference.

      The chamber reiterated that European companies believe they are not operating on a level playing field in China and regulatory barriers and market access issues need to be better dealt with.

      The Chinese government is moving to further open up its market and create a better environment for investors. The National Development and Reform Commission, together with the Ministry of Commerce, announced a new catalogue for foreign investment in March, which opened more areas for foreign investment.

      China's major State-owned companies, including energy giants like China National Petroleum Corp and China Petrochemical Corp, have started reforms to entice private and foreign companies to invest in some State projects.

      However, Wuttke said that the European firms are "looking forward to a very small negative list [for foreign investment]," noting that the new catalogue is an improvement but only "small steps."

      He also noted that the government's antitrust efforts, under which several foreign companies have been targeted, have seen improvements in terms of transparency.

      The so-called "negative list" management approach, specifying the areas restricted to overseas investment, is supposed to offer greater freedom to foreign investors. The "negative list" approach is currently applied in the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone.

      Bai Ming, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation under the Ministry of Commerce, said that the "negative list" management mode will be gradually introduced nationwide consistent with the government's agenda.

      "The investment environment in China has been greatly improved during the past years, and it takes time before further changes can take place," Bai told the Global Times on Wednesday.

      China is negotiating with the EU on a bilateral investment treaty, which is expected to further pave the way for mutual investments. "Some issues [on the investment environment] could be solved during the negotiations," said Bai.

      Related news

      MorePhoto

      Most popular in 24h

      MoreTop news

      MoreVideo

      News
      Politics
      Business
      Society
      Culture
      Military
      Sci-tech
      Entertainment
      Sports
      Odd
      Features
      Biz
      Economy
      Travel
      Travel News
      Travel Types
      Events
      Food
      Hotel
      Bar & Club
      Architecture
      Gallery
      Photo
      CNS Photo
      Video
      Video
      Learning Chinese
      Learn About China
      Social Chinese
      Business Chinese
      Buzz Words
      Bilingual
      Resources
      ECNS Wire
      Special Coverage
      Infographics
      Voices
      LINE
      Back to top Links | About Us | Jobs | Contact Us | Privacy Policy
      Copyright ©1999-2018 Chinanews.com. All rights reserved.
      Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
      主站蜘蛛池模板: 亚洲狠狠ady亚洲精品大秀| 亚洲精品视频免费观看| 亚洲一区二区影院| 在线毛片片免费观看| 亚洲中文字幕在线第六区| 国产精品一区二区三区免费| 精品亚洲成α人无码成α在线观看 | 国产成人精品高清免费| 亚洲色欲色欱wwW在线| 在线观看成人免费视频| 亚洲日本VA中文字幕久久道具| 天天看免费高清影视| 亚洲日韩亚洲另类激情文学| 在线a毛片免费视频观看| 亚洲欧洲专线一区| 全部免费国产潢色一级| yy一级毛片免费视频| 亚洲成av人影院| 亚洲免费视频播放| 亚洲精品国产av成拍色拍| 免费国产一级特黄久久| 成人A毛片免费观看网站| 精品亚洲成AV人在线观看| 日韩不卡免费视频| 免费的黄色的网站| 亚洲国产成人久久综合碰碰动漫3d| 91青青青国产在观免费影视| 亚洲色大成网站www永久网站| 一区国严二区亚洲三区| 在线观看免费无码专区| 亚洲婷婷综合色高清在线| 男女交性永久免费视频播放| 皇色在线免费视频| 亚洲制服丝袜在线播放| 亚洲国产av无码精品| 91精品国产免费久久国语蜜臀| 国产成人亚洲综合网站不卡| 亚洲伊人成无码综合网 | 亚洲免费电影网站| 免费在线观看中文字幕| 51精品视频免费国产专区|