There has never been a better time to talk about partnerships for global growth and prosperity. The world is gripped by transformation and turmoil. Regional conflicts are lingering. The global economy is anaemic. Unilateralism, protectionism and trade bullying are on the rise. The weaponisation of tariffs and technology is shattering the global trading system. And the stability of the industrial and supply chains is under threat.
Now is a testing moment for responsible countries as well as responsible business leaders. More than ever, we need to uphold openness and inclusiveness and oppose isolation and exclusion. We need to uphold dialogue and co-operation, and oppose division and confrontation.
Strengthening economic relationships
President Xi Jinping, while attending the G20 summit in Brazil, met separately with Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Chancellor Olaf Scholz and President Emmanuel Macron, among others. And since the beginning of this year, European leaders, including those from Belgium, Italy, Spain and Finland have visited China. Strengthening mutually beneficial co-operation has always been a priority on the agenda in those meetings.
President Xi Jinping has unequivocally noted that China sees Europe as an important partner in our efforts to advance Chinese modernisation.
China and the European Union are each other’s second largest trading partner. In 2023, the bilateral trade stood at $780bn. And trade between China and the EU and the UK put together stood at over $920bn. This economic partnership has brought enormous mutual benefits to the two sides.
This partnership is a long-term one and the potentials are yet to be fully tapped. I always say to the business community in the UK and other European countries: you should have a good grasp of the major trends in China and stay the course in our co-operation.
This is because China brings scale. With a population of over 1.4bn and a middle-income group of over 400m, China brings unparalleled market opportunities.
China is also open. Committed to promoting high-standard opening up, we have lifted all restrictions on foreign investment in manufacturing, and established a nationwide negative list system for cross border services trade.
Caps on foreign equity holdings in banking and insurance institutions have been lifted. All restrictive measures in the financial sector have been removed from the negative list for foreign investment.
We have taken steps to further open the telecom, internet, education, culture, medical service and other sectors, and now wholly foreign-owned hospitals have been permitted in nine places in China, including Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai.
Investors from the UK and Europe pay great attention to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. This is very right, because the GDP of the GBA is equivalent to the 10th biggest economy in the world, and it is also a testing ground for the building of a high standard open economy in China.
Fourth, China is a stable source of supply. With a fully-fledged industrial system, China’s output of 220 industrial products ranks first in the world. So in China, Europe can find a reliable partner in industrial and supply chains.
And fifth, China has the quantity and quality of human resources: 170m highly educated and skilled workers. The number of full-time equivalent researchers has led the world for many consecutive years. This provides important support for entrepreneurship and investment.
China-UK relations stand at a new juncture
China and the UK should work together closely to follow up on the common understanding between President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Keir Starmer. We should strive for mutual benefit and win-win outcomes, and jointly write the next chapter in the sound and stable development of China-UK relations.
But fundamentally, the development of China-UK relations relies on the right perception of each other. The UK should not be led astray by any third party, and fall into the trap of bloc confrontation.
The two governments should reactivate dialogue mechanisms such as the EFD. We need to strengthen co-operation in trade and investment, financial services, public health, clean energy, climate change, science and technology, culture, education, tourism and law enforcement.
We should encourage the business sectors of the two sides to strengthen third-party market co-operation to help them fully complement each other’s strengths, achieve win-win results and contribute to the economy and improvement of people’s lives in developing countries.
We hope the two governments will work together to create a fair, just and non-discriminatory environment for business communities, synergise our development strategies and promote market connectivity.
Zeguang Zheng is Chinese Ambassador to the UK.
Ambassador Zheng joined OMFIF’s China-UK investor forum 2024. This is an edited and abridged version of his remarks. Read the full speech here.
