To enhance the exchanges between its members and the Chinese enterprises in Germany, share the business experience, learn the differences in business environment and regulations between Europe and the UK in the context of Brexit, and establish transnational connections, the CCCUK worked with the Investment Promotion Agency of the Government of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany on 20 September to organize “a meeting of experience exchange on investment environment with Chinese enterprises in the UK and Germany”. ZHU Bin, First Secretary of the Economic and Commercial Counsellor’s Office, the Chinese Embassy in the UK, CHANG Yun, Vice Chairman of the CCCUK and Chief Representative of the Representative Office of CCPIT in the UK, FU Qiang, General Manager, Greater China, Investment Promotion Agency of the Government of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and others attended and delivered their speeches. The event attracted nearly 70 representatives from the members of the CCCUK.

Picture 1: ZHU Bin, First Secretary of the Economic and Commercial Counsellor’s Office, the Chinese Embassy in the UK delivering a speech

ZHU Bin, First Secretary of the Economic and Commercial Counsellor’s Office, the Chinese Embassy in the UK briefed the participants on the China-UK economic and trade cooperation, hoping that the event could provide participants with a platform and opportunity of communication that helps them deal with the challenges posed by Brexit, learn from the experience of the Investment Promotion Agency of the Government of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany in the services for enterprises, and find the way to jointly fight against the counter-current of trade protectionism.

Picture 2: CHANG Yun, Vice Chairman of the CCCUK and Chief Representative of the Representative Office of CCPIT in the UK delivering a speech

According to Vice Chairman CHANG Yun, this event represented a new attempt and action for the CCCUK to continually expand foreign cooperation and further improve the services for enterprises. The event was expected to expand the CCCUK’s external cooperation, enhance the business exchanges among enterprises, and further stimulate the China-Germany cooperation.

Image 3: FU Qiang, General Manager, Greater China, Investment Promotion Agency of the Government of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany briefing participants on the business environment and opportunities for Chinese enterprises in Germany

General Manager FU Qiang explained the business environment and opportunities for Chinese enterprises in Germany in detail. He introduced the overall situation in NRW and presented the investment status and advantages of NRW in technology, transportation, life and industry support, etc. In particular, he highlighted the top 10 reasons to invest in NRW: Its location at the heart of Europe; highly developed economy; Germany’s industrial heartland; the home to the world’s market leaders; a gathering place of foreign capitals in Germany; the gateway to Europe; convenient transportation; the world’s top R&D base; one of the top talent training bases in Europe; the expertise in Global logistics; a future-oriented digital economy industry base; and the quality life in NRW. Moreover, he pointed out that the Agency will offer a welcome package of 3,000 euros for each business registered in Germany from outside the EU.

Ms. Pauline presented the general information on the Investment Promotion Agency of the Government of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Headquartered in the state capital Dusseldorf, the Agency is an official non-profit organization under the Department of Economics, NRW State Government. It’s committed to providing one-stop consulting and incorporating services for Chinese enterprises to operate in NRW.

Picture 4: At the meeting site

In addition, the event included case sharing and introduction to the laws and regulations of Germany. Mr. Martin Sprung, Director of Marketing, Zhuzhou Diamond Cutting Tools (Europe) Co., Ltd. explained his experience in building a factory in NRW, Germany from the perspectives of corporate governance organization, preliminary investment evaluation, project management, etc. Dr. Gaussen and Dr. Bododna, lawyers from Heuking Germany gave a brief introduction to the situation in the context of Brexit and the impact of tighter regulation and control on investment; moreover, they presented the legal basics of investment in Germany in respect of the legal forms of companies, the investment, the M&A, the labour law, the taxes, etc.

The representatives of members exchanged views with the distinguished guests at the Q&A and communication sessions, having gained a further understanding of investment in Germany. The CCCUK’s first training involving cross-border issues was brought to a successful close.