|
| Portfolio |
|
|
| Mme. Ma Xiuhong's portfolio covers the Department of Treaty and Law, Department of American and Oceanian Affairs, Department of Foreign Investment Administration, Investment Promotion Agency, China Association of Enterprises with Foreign Investment and China Council for International Investment Promotion. |
|
| Contact Editor |
|
|
Add:No.2 Dong Chang'an Avenue,Beijing China (100731)
Tel:(010)51651200-613
Fax:(010)65677512 |
|
|
|
| Speech at the Banquet of China General Chamber of Commerce |
|
| | From: Article type: |
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good evening! I am very pleased to have this opportunity to get together with representatives of Chinese companies in the US and American friends from all walks of life to celebrate the first anniversary of China General Chamber of Commerce in USA (CGCC). On behalf of Vice Minister Zhang Qiong of the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council, the Ministry of Commerce of PRC, and the legal exchange delegation of the Chinese government, I’d like to congratulate on the first anniversary of the CGCC and to express my sincere thanks to CGCC, Department of Foreign Economic Cooperation and Department of American and Oceanian Affairs of MOFCOM, China Investment Promotion Agency, and the Chinese Embassy in the US for successfully organizing the anniversary celebration and this gala dinner. In the meantime, I’d like to thank Under Secretary of Commerce Glassman for attending this banquet.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
One year ago, against the backdrop that Chinese companies’ investment in the US was expanding, investment modes diversifying, and investment scale increasing, Chinese companies in the US established the China General Chamber of Commerce in USA. The establishment of CGCC coincided with President Hu Jintao’s participation at the UN’s 60th anniversary summit in New York. President Hu received all the members attending the first council meeting of CGCC and congratulated them on the establishment of CGCC. He hoped that CGCC could fully play its role of civil society, unite all the Chinese companies, bolster their good profile, protect their legal rights and interests, and support companies’ development, thus contributing to the economic and trade exchanges as well as the friendly relations between China and the US. Vice Premier Wu Yi also attached great importance to the establishment of CGCC and wrote “A bridge for China-US economy and trade. A bond for companies’ cooperationâ€. She also called for CGCC to play a more important role in promoting China-US economic and trade exchanges.
Over the past year, CGCC, by upholding its principle of serving its membership, has carried out its work effectively and made great achievement in playing the role of guiding, encouraging, promoting, serving and uniting Chinese companies and business people in the US, and in strengthening the link with the US government, Congress and trade associations. With its effective work, CGCC has become an important platform for Chinese companies in the US to exchange information, and strengthen links, solidarity and mutual help, thus creating the image of “home for Chinese businessesâ€. Meanwhile, it has promoted the links and exchanges between Chinese companies in the US and the US business community, US government and Congress, facilitated Chinese companies’ better and faster integration into local community, and created and protected Chinese companies’ good images, thus playing the role of being “A bridge for China-US economy and trade. A bond for companies’ cooperationâ€. Hereby, I’d like to congratulate on the achievement made by CGCC and thank those who have given support and help to CGCC!
Ladies and Gentlemen,
As the biggest developing country and developed country in the world, China and US differ greatly in terms of economic development level and economic structure, but are strongly complementary with each other in terms of natural endowment, human resources, market, capital, technologies, etc. It is proven that economic complementarities between China and the US together with mutual benefits in trade and economic cooperation are the foundations and driving forces for sustaining China-US economic and trade ties. Strengthening China-US trade and economic cooperation is in the interests of both countries and both peoples.
Over the past 27 years since China’s establishment of diplomatic relationship with the US, bilateral trade and economic cooperation has fundamentally changed in that it has covered all economic fields, thus achieving interdependence, mutual benefits, win-win and common development. Over the past 27 years, China-US trade increased by 85 folds. America has become China’s second largest trading partner. China has become America’s third largest trading partner. Over the past five years since China’s accession to the WTO, US export to China witnessed the fastest growing period, with an average annual growth 4.9 times that to the globe. US export to China in 2005 was up 118% compared to that in 2001, much higher than the growth rate of US export to other major markets. China has jumped from being 9th largest export market for the US to 4th largest, becoming a major driving force for US export growth. In the first 10 months of this year, US export to China reached nearly US$50 billion, exceeding last year’s total export, with an increase of 24%. If this growth momentum could sustain, China is going to be the 3rd largest export market for the US in 2007.
Bilateral trade is growing fast. So is two-way investment. The US is one of China’s largest foreign direct investment sources. By the end of October, 2006, the number of US companies in China was 51,352, with over US$ 52.9 billion actual input in China. At present, China has become one of the major overseas profit sources for US companies. In 2005, US companies in China made about US$9.7 billion in profit. In the meantime, US companies increased their market shares in China through investment. According to preliminary statistics, in 2005 US companies’ sales revenue in China’s domestic market hit US$77 billion.
Chinese companies’ investment in the US has begun to take off. In 2004, the number of Chinese companies in the US and their investment were up 25.6% and 30.5% respectively on the basis of 2002. In 2005, the figures increased again compared to 2004. Between January and September this year, 107 Chinese companies invested in the US and set up their own businesses. Meanwhile, an increasingly large group of Chinese companies are seeking for opportunities to invest in the US. By September, 2006, Chinese companies’ FDI in the US amounted to nearly US$3 billion, with over 1,100 newly set up companies in the US, covering manufacturing, R&D, trade, transportation, consultancy and other service sectors. At present, the US has become one of the important destinations for Chinese companies “going globalâ€, exploring overseas business. Chinese companies investing in the US include not only some famous big names, such as, COSCO, CNPC, CSCEC, China Telecom, China Shipping, but also some competent emerging companies, such as, Haier, TCL, Wanxiang, Huawei, ZTE, etc. Tens of thousands of jobs created by Chinese companies’ investment in the US have helped alleviate employment pressures of the place where the companies are located, thus contributing to America’s economic and social development.
At present, China’s economy sustains stable and relatively fast growth. In 2006, GDP growth is expected to reach nearly 10%. Import and export will arrive at about US$1.7 trillion, among which import will total at around US$770 billion. China will become the world’s third largest trading power and importer, next to the US and Germany. China’s FDI will exceed US$60 billion, securing for China the top position amongst developing countries. The Chinese government has made expanding domestic demand an important engine for boosting economic growth, and has taken measures to expand China’s goods and services market. Driven by the policy of expanding domestic demand, in 2006, the growth of total retail sales of social consumer goods in China will be over 13%, 4 percentage points higher than the GDP growth rate.
Despite generally sound economic development in China, some deep-rooted problems, such as, unsound economic structure, extensive economic growth model, deficient mechanisms and unbalanced regional development, remain unresolved. Economic and social development still encounters some difficulties and challenges. In order to address the problems facing China’s economic development (employment, urban and rural discrepancy, regional differences, unfair distribution, unsound legal system, environment and ecological problems, social morality, etc.), in the second half of last year, the Chinese government made an important deployment of building a socialist harmonious society and set the goals of achieving democracy, rule of law, fair and justice, creditworthiness and fraternity, vitality, stability and order and harmony between man and nature.
2006-2010 is an important period for China’s economic development. The ongoing 11th five-year program will gear China’s economy into a new period of stable growth and harmonious development. In the coming four years, China’s average annual GDP growth is expected to be over 7.5%. It is estimated that by 2010 China’s GDP will reach US$ 3.2 trillion, with a per capita GDP of US$ 2,400. The aggregated sales of consumer goods and capital goods will total at US$4.8 trillion. Import will exceed US$1 trillion. By then, China is expected to be the world’s second largest import market.
In order to build an environmentally friendly and resource-conserving society, through implementing 11th five year program, we shall enhance the quality of economic growth while expanding economic aggregate. By 2010, energy consumption per unit GDP will be reduced by 20%, and total emission of major pollutants by 10%. Meanwhile, important progress shall be made in deepening opening-up and system reform, improving democracy and legal system, narrowing urban and rural gap, rationalizing income distribution, setting up social security system and public service system, enhancing people’s education, strengthening IPR protection, and building an innovation-driven country, so as to build a more prosperous and harmonious country five years later.
Many friends present here are witnesses of China’s reform and opening-up and the development of China-US economic and trade ties. Many companies are both beneficiaries of China-US trade and economic cooperation and driving forces for the stable development of China-US economic and trade ties. The Chinese market is fully open to US companies. Given the strong complementarities of China-US economic and trade structures, great market demands exist between China and the US. A more liberalized and dynamic China will become a closer all-dimensional cooperation partner for the US. I hope Chinese and American entrepreneurs can seize new development opportunities and make greater achievements through strengthening cooperation. China-US economic and trade ties are important foundations for China-US relations. Equal and mutually beneficial economic and trade ties are of great significance to the healthy development of the overall China-US ties. I hope every body present here can make new contributions to promoting mutually beneficial and win-win China-US economic and trade ties and the development of China-US comprehensive, constructive and cooperative relationship.
I sincerely hope that CGCC can play a bigger role in promoting understanding between Chinese and American companies, in strengthening closer cooperation, and in uniting and serving Chinese companies in the US. I hope CGCC could guide and help member companies to abide by local laws, enhance the awareness of social responsibility, and create and protect good images of Chinese companies so as to bear the responsibility of promoting the healthy and stable development of China-US economic and trade ties and injecting new vitalities into two countries’ friendly relations. At the same time, I hope you could continue to support CGCC’s growth and development.
I wish CGCC could prosper and make greater achievements in the New Year!
Wish you a Merry Christmas!
Thank you!
(Source: English Site of Ms. Ma Xiuhong)
|
|
All articles marked with "Article type: Original" posted on the website of the Ministry of Commerce and its sub-sites are copyrighted by this Website and its sub-sites. Any reproduction or use by any other websites, media or individuals must be attached with a clear indication of "Source: Ministry of Commerce Website".
All articles posted on this website or its sub-sites marked with "Article type: reproduced" or "Article type: translated" and "Article type: redistributed" come from other media, and are provided solely for the user's information, which does not mean this Website or its sub-sites endorse the ideas thereof or assume any legal liability or responsibility for their authenticity. Any other media, websites or individuals must maintain the source of information indication on this Website or its sub-sites when using the information, and shall assume legal liability for the use.
|
