Foreign firms expand investment in China amid business recovery, further opening up

Further opening-up

As the world economy is grappling with perhaps the worst recession in decades, China has proved itself to be an important engine of global economic growth.

According to the International Monetary Fund forecast, China will be the only major economy to report growth in 2020.

Keenly aware of China's economic resilience and development momentum, foreign enterprises are more actively involved in the process of China's further opening up.

US company SILK EV LLC set up a joint innovation center in the northeastern Chinese city of Changchun and Italy in May to develop a super sports model for the iconic Chinese sedan brand Hongqi.

The center will partner with China's automaker giant FAW Group and leading global auto tech companies to support the development of the Hongqi S series.

The New York-headquartered SILK EV LLC will invest 10 billion yuan in the next five years on Hongqi S series products, aiming to make it a world-famous luxury sports car brand.

Swiss food giant Nestle also announced new investment of over 730 million yuan to enhance its product portfolio in late May.

"Having successfully managed the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic with the support of the Chinese authorities, Nestle has decided to increase its investments in China, which is another clear demonstration of our long-term commitment and confidence in the country," said Rashid Qureshi, chairman and CEO of Nestle Greater China Region.

Uniqlo, a clothing brand under the Japan-based Fast Retailing Co., Ltd., opened 19 chain stores in China on a single day in mid-August, marking a further step into the Chinese market.

"We opened eight new stores in June and 19 in August. We're entering six new cities, which signals our confidence in the Chinese market and Chinese economy despite COVID-19," said Jalin Wu, chief marketing officer of Uniqlo Greater China.

Data from the Ministry of Commerce showed that foreign direct investment (FDI) into the Chinese mainland, in actual use, grew 18.7 percent year on year to 84.13 billion yuan in August. In the first eight months, FDI inflow amounted to 619.78 billion yuan, up 2.6 percent year-on-year.

While the pandemic has dealt a blow to businesses, China has been pushing for further economic opening up. At the 2020 China International Fair for Trade in Services, held earlier this month in Beijing, the country vowed to continue easing market access in its services sector by further shortening its negative list for foreign investment.

"We believe strongly that the markets in China and in particular the automotive premium market will grow, driven by these latest ideas of the government," said Wieland.