Multinationals to thrive under new development pattern

Foreign companies will see new growth opportunities in China as the country deepens global ties under the dual-circulation development pattern, leaders from multinationals said on Thursday.

"The dual-circulation pattern offers new opportunities for the cooperation between foreign and Chinese companies, especially in overseas markets," said Jerry Guo, vice-president of Qualcomm China for government affairs. 

For example, Chinese smart phone producers who have taken the lead in the domestic market are increasingly placing their strategic focus on exploring overseas markets, he said.

Qualcomm, the US-based wireless technology company, will step up efforts to facilitate this process, by virtue of its advanced technology and global partnership network, Guo said.

Guo said at the release of the book MNCs' Actions in Fighting COVID-19 Together with China in Beijing on Thursday, amid the country's efforts to build a "dual-circulation" new development pattern.

China will nurture a strong domestic market and establish a new development pattern, according to the statement released on Thursday after the Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.

The country will smooth domestic circulation and let domestic and international circulations reinforce each other, spurring consumption in an all-round way and expanding investment, said the statement.

Despite an emphasis on the domestic market, the pattern entails strengthening cooperation with multinationals to make the economy deeply blended with international economic exchanges and achieve mutual benefits, experts said.

Wu Jing, vice-president of UPS China's public affairs, said China's commitment to building a modern logistics system, as a key support for the dual-circulation pattern, has brought new development opportunities for delivery multinationals like UPS. 

The US package delivery company will enhance cooperation with Chinese partners to not only help upgrade the country's logistics system, but promote the development of cross-border e-commerce and the global recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, Wu said at the book release.

The book, both in Chinese and English, compiles dozens of multinationals' actions of fulfilling social responsibility and making contributions to China's fight against the COVID-19 outbreak, as well as their proposals and thoughts on dealing with the profound changes brought by the pandemic.

The China International Council for the Promotion of Multinational Corporations handled the editorial side of the book, while the Social Sciences Academic Press (China) was the publisher.

Despite negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, Guo said he remains confident in the Chinese market, with the emerging 5G applications that have sped up development amid the pandemic to help counter the economic losses to a large extent.

Five areas of 5G applications may see the biggest growth potential in China, namely industrial internet, healthcare, new forms of commerce, pan-entertainment, and distance education and teleworking, Guo said.