Latest news with #AnnualMeetingoftheNewChampions
Qatar Tribune
01-07-2025
- Business
- Qatar Tribune
China steps up foreign investment drive amid growing trade tensions
Agencies China has stepped up efforts to attract foreign investors, as policymakers look to bolster the domestic economy and safeguard its position in global supply chains amid negotiations with major trade partners. New tax breaks unveiled this week aim to encourage foreign firms to reinvest profits locally – part of a broader effort to restore confidence and signal openness as challenging trade talks continue with the European Union and United States. The Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Finance and the State Taxation Administration jointly announced the new incentives in a statement on Monday. Foreign companies that choose to reinvest profits earned in China back into local operations will be able to deduct their onshore tax by an amount equivalent to 10 per cent of the reinvested sum. Any unused credits can also be carried forward until the end of 2028. Eligible reinvestments include capital injections into domestic firms, such as establishing new entities or acquiring equity from non-affiliated parties – though purchases of publicly listed shares are excluded. Foreign investors can also apply retroactively for qualifying reinvestments made since January 1, 2025. 'It's a clear contrast – while the US is threatening trading partners with tariffs, China is offering tax relief to attract foreign investment,' said Sun Lijian, a finance professor at Fudan University in Shanghai. 'A range of opening-up policies that China has adopted in recent years, including visa-free travel arrangements, aim to encourage more foreign investors and businesses to integrate into China's economic system,' he profits made in China back to home countries requires approval by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) and is also subject to taxation. Foreign firms have long reinvested profits to expand their operations in the country, but geopolitical tensions have dampened sentiment in recent years. China experienced a net capital outflow of US$168 billion in 2024 – the highest since records began in 1990, according to calculations by Bloomberg. As uncertainty rises, global investors are holding onto their cash in a climate where a better business environment matters more than ever, Sun said. The new tax incentives came at a delicate time for China as it negotiates trade terms with the European Union – its second-largest export destination – and the United States, its third-largest. Foreign investment remains vital to China, providing jobs, technology and management expertise, and is essential to the country's broader ties with major trading nations Speaking at the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Tianjin last week, China's Premier Li Qiang pledged to 'open the door wider to the world.' 'We will further integrate and connect with the global market, step up industrial collaboration with other countries and actively share the fruits of our development to deliver greater benefits to the world,' he told hundreds of remains the world's second-largest recipient of foreign investment, but the amount has fallen as competition with the US intensifies. Washington has imposed tech curbs and higher tariffs on Chinese products, and rolled out tax incentives to lure American firms – particularly manufacturers – back to the United States. From January to May, foreign investment fell by 13.2 per cent year on year to about 358.2 billion yuan, government data showed. The world's second-largest economy has also opened up outbound portfolio investment through government-designated channels, such as the Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor (QDII) program. On Monday, China's forex regulator announced that it had recently allocated a total of US$3.08 billion in investment quotas to eligible QDIIs, to meet growing demand for overseas asset allocation. The move aims to further support outbound investments in compliance with regulations, it said. The QDII program plays an important role in China's financial market opening, allowing eligible domestic financial institutions to invest overseas by remitting both yuan and foreign currencies within approved limits.
The Star
30-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
Economists call for structural reforms to shift China's focus to consumption
While eye-catching technological breakthroughs – led by the DeepSeek artificial intelligence (AI) model – have boosted confidence in China amid intensifying rivalry with the United States, economists at the Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Tianjin have called for structural reforms to make China a consumption-driven economy. 'We can talk about technological supremacy, like AI and all these, but China is never going to be a rich country unless it becomes a big consumer country,' Jin Keyu, a professor at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology's school of business and management, said at the World Economic Forum event, which is also known as 'Summer Davos'. China's political economy mechanism is largely geared towards subsidising production to gain competitiveness, Jin said during a panel discussion on Thursday. 'Chinese goods are so competitive, and everyone's importing Chinese goods, then China is going to have a real problem, not just with the US, but with the rest of the world, because it's no longer about just efficiency, it's about harmony,' she said. 'It's about giving other countries an opportunity to be part of the global supply chain in every single sector.' Jin said China should raise its internal consumption to harmonise its trading relationships, with opportunities to be found in the services sector and in the smaller Chinese cities that young people were flocking back to. 'It will be fantastic if the yardstick competition on the local governments can put consumption as one of the measurements of success,' she added. Eswar Prasad, an economics professor at Cornell University in New York, said during the same panel discussion that pushing ahead with deeper structural reforms is a critical issue for the Chinese government. 'The brief surge in confidence that we have seen thanks to the shift in narrative might be difficult to sustain if you don't get the macroeconomics right,' he said. 'So technology is great, but you need macroeconomics to support it. 'Some deeper-rooted structural reforms, which seem to have been taken off the table for now, really need to be brought back on the table. And with that, I think consumers might end up becoming much more confident.' While DeepSeek has increased confidence in China's capital market, it has not had the same effect among young people or in the labour market, said Joseph Luc Ngai, Greater China chairman at management consultancy McKinsey & Company. 'In fact, DeepSeek has created some anxiety around 'hey, if I have DeepSeek, if I can be much more efficient, do I need these young people any more?'' Ngai said. Zhu Min, a former deputy governor of the People's Bank of China and former deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund, said the Chinese government should formulate more macroeconomic policies to build a solid social safety net – from healthcare to retirement pensions – to make sure people feel it is safe to spend on consumption. The job market would be another top priority for Beijing, Zhu said, adding that it should make sure that individual incomes grow in line with economic growth. We must address deep-seated structural challenges hindering the domestic cycle by advancing comprehensive reform and opening up In a speech in Tianjin on Wednesday, Premier Li Qiang pledged that China would become a 'consumption powerhouse' capable of fuelling domestic and global growth. Qiushi, the Communist Party's theoretical journal, said in a commentary piece published on Thursday that China should enhance the vitality and reliability of its domestic economic circulation amid rising external uncertainty. 'Strengthening the domestic economic cycle is both a development and a reform issue,' it said. 'We must address deep-seated structural challenges hindering the domestic cycle by advancing comprehensive reform and opening up, improving institutional mechanisms, and refining policy frameworks to provide sustained momentum for domestic circulation.' To tackle mismatches between supply and demand, China will enhance long-term mechanisms to expand consumption and foster a market-driven endogenous growth mechanism for effective investment, it added. 'Insufficient consumer demand remains a major constraint on the domestic economic cycle,' it said. 'We must tap into potential to boost consumption, promote the upgrading of bulk consumption, unleash the potential of service consumption, and amplify the spillover effects of emerging consumption.' Qiushi said Beijing should also spare no effort to stabilise employment by supporting businesses in retaining jobs and expanding employment opportunities across all sectors, particularly in services, with a focus on addressing the employment needs of university graduates, migrant workers and other key groups. - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
Barnama
30-06-2025
- Business
- Barnama
HCL Group And UpLink Launch Fourth Global Aquapreneur Innovation Challenge To Boost Water Resilience
DELHI, India & TIANJIN, China, June 30 (Bernama) -- Global conglomerate HCL Group and UpLink, early-stage innovation initiative of the World Economic Forum, have announced the fourth challenge of the Aquapreneur Innovation Initiative, the Water Resilience Challenge. The announcement was made at the Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Tianjin, China. Applications are open until August 4, 2025, with winners to be announced in January 2026. The top 10 winners will receive a total financial award of CHF1.75 million divided amongst the innovators. For detailed information and eligibility criteria, visit: Important Dates to Note
DW
27-06-2025
- Automotive
- DW
China's faltering economy in focus of WEF Tianjin meeting – DW – 06/27/2025
The world's second-largest economy is suffering from weak household consumption, and its auto industry is particularly vulnerable. Manuela Kasper-Claridge reports from the "Summer Davos" in Tianjin. "Even if we only walk, we are faster than others," says Sun as he laughs mischievously. He is using the run-walk imagery to describe the state of the Chinese economy compared to its competitors. The businessman had been doing well selling real estate in China. Still, he doesn't want to see his full name published because his business is currently not doing well. There are vacant properties all over, and many apartments are just too expensive. What about the future, what's next? Sun shrugs, suggesting that everything will turn out fine. The salesman in his fifties is hoping for some innovative signs from the government. Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang is as optimistic as ever. He is speaking at the "Summer Davos 2025" conference in Tianjin, organized by the Switzerland-based World Economic Forum (WEF) and officially called the Annual Meeting of the New Champions. Around 1,700 participants from all over the world have traveled to the northern Chinese city and are listening with hope. China reported economic growth of 5.5% in the first quarter of this year. The second quarter also looks good, according to the Chinese premier. But many in China view the government's optimism with skepticism and prefer to save rather than spend their money right now. Walking through large shopping centers in Tianjin, it is impossible not to notice the nearly empty stores. Demand for watches, jewelry and designer handbags is low, and customers are few and far between. In the stylish showrooms of Chinese car manufacturers, most of the salespeople look bored as they stare at their mobile phones. The latest NIO electric car sits alone in its showroom. With no customers in sight, it doesn't look like anyone wants to give it a test drive. Even at a nearby hair salon, little is happening on a normal weekday. There are four stylists, but not a single customer. The lack of spending at home is hitting Chinese automakers particularly hard. Competition for market share is fierce, and because of that prices are in a free fall in some cases. Some brand-new vehicles are being sold at used-car prices, a practice called "zero mileage." "It is good for the consumers, they are getting cars at very reduced prices and get very advanced, competitive cars," says Killian Aviles, head of Asia Pacific Region for Dekra Group, a vehicle testing and inspecting company that is still doing good business in China with testing and consulting for the automotive industry. "At the same time the profit margins that the companies have, have been eroded," Aviles told DW. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Consolidation seems inevitable, and Aviles is not the only one who is convinced of this. "Only the strongest and healthiest will survive," he said. China could try and ease the situation by exporting more vehicles to Europe, but that would depend a lot on whether the Europeans allow such imports and do not further increase tariffs. Yet, a lot of experts don't think the Chinese economy's strong dependence on exports is a viable model for the future. "China actually realizes that the export-led growth era is over and, of course, it is still struggling with over-investment and excess production," says Diana Choyleva, a senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute's Center for China Analysis. Choyleva, who specializes on China's economy and politics, is convinced that domestic consumption must increase to keep the economy going. At the same time, China wants to become a global market leader in as many industries as possible, and visitors are proudly shown select companies around Tianjin. The city is home to one of the world's busiest ports and is focusing on technology like robotics, among other things. One such company is the Siasun Robot factory, which uses the advertising slogan "Making the world better by Robotics." The company sells its industrial robots in 40 countries around the world, and its product range also includes robots used in the nuclear industry. However, its latest models aren't on display. Instead, they are only showing off standard machines like those used by the automotive industry. Still, the growth potential is enormous, a company production manager told DW. "Soon the robots will be building robots themselves," he enthuses. "Where will the people be then?" he asks rhetorically without answering. On the banks of the Hai River, which flows through Tianjin, many Chinese sit and enjoy picnics. Families with children, the elderly, and many young people are there, too. Some are dancing. At the same time, many restaurants around town are half-empty just like the shopping malls and showrooms earlier in the day. Perhaps the restaurants are just too expensive. Or perhaps right now many Chinese consumers would rather save their money for a rainy day. Whatever it is, their homemade food is likely just as tasty as anything they would get in a sit-down restaurant.
DW
27-06-2025
- Automotive
- DW
China's falterung economy in focus of WEF Tianjin meeting – DW – 06/27/2025
The world's second-largest economy is suffering from weak household consumption, and its auto industry is particularly vulnerable. Manuela Kasper-Claridge reports from the "Summer Davos" in Tianjin. "Even if we only walk, we are faster than others," says Sun as he laughs mischievously. He is using the run-walk imagery to describe the state of the Chinese economy compared to its competitors. The businessman had been doing well selling real estate in China. Still, he doesn't want to see his full name published because his business is currently not doing well. There are vacant properties all over, and many apartments are just too expensive. What about the future, what's next? Sun shrugs, suggesting that everything will turn out fine. The salesman in his fifties is hoping for some innovative signs from the government. Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang is as optimistic as ever. He is speaking at the "Summer Davos 2025" conference in Tianjin, organized by the Switzerland-based World Economic Forum (WEF) and officially called the Annual Meeting of the New Champions. Around 1,700 participants from all over the world have traveled to the northern Chinese city and are listening with hope. China reported economic growth of 5.5% in the first quarter of this year. The second quarter also looks good, according to the Chinese premier. But many in China view the government's optimism with skepticism and prefer to save rather than spend their money right now. Walking through large shopping centers in Tianjin, it is impossible not to notice the nearly empty stores. Demand for watches, jewelry and designer handbags is low, and customers are few and far between. In the stylish showrooms of Chinese car manufacturers, most of the salespeople look bored as they stare at their mobile phones. The latest NIO electric car sits alone in its showroom. With no customers in sight, it doesn't look like anyone wants to give it a test drive. Even at a nearby hair salon, little is happening on a normal weekday. There are four stylists, but not a single customer. The lack of spending at home is hitting Chinese automakers particularly hard. Competition for market share is fierce, and because of that prices are in a free fall in some cases. Some brand-new vehicles are being sold at used-car prices, a practice called "zero mileage." "It is good for the consumers, they are getting cars at very reduced prices and get very advanced, competitive cars," says Killian Aviles, head of Asia Pacific Region for Dekra Group, a vehicle testing and inspecting company that is still doing good business in China with testing and consulting for the automotive industry. "At the same time the profit margins that the companies have, have been eroded," Aviles told DW. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Consolidation seems inevitable, and Aviles is not the only one who is convinced of this. "Only the strongest and healthiest will survive," he said. China could try and ease the situation by exporting more vehicles to Europe, but that would depend a lot on whether the Europeans allow such imports and do not further increase tariffs. Yet, a lot of experts don't think the Chinese economy's strong dependence on exports is a viable model for the future. "China actually realizes that the export-led growth era is over and, of course, it is still struggling with over-investment and excess production," says Diana Choyleva, a senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute's Center for China Analysis. Choyleva, who specializes on China's economy and politics, is convinced that domestic consumption must increase to keep the economy going. At the same time, China wants to become a global market leader in as many industries as possible, and visitors are proudly shown select companies around Tianjin. The city is home to one of the world's busiest ports and is focusing on technology like robotics, among other things. One such company is the Siasun Robot factory, which uses the advertising slogan "Making the world better by Robotics." The company sells its industrial robots in 40 countries around the world, and its product range also includes robots used in the nuclear industry. However, its latest models aren't on display. Instead, they are only showing off standard machines like those used by the automotive industry. Still, the growth potential is enormous, a company production manager told DW. "Soon the robots will be building robots themselves," he enthuses. "Where will the people be then?" he asks rhetorically without answering. On the banks of the Hai River, which flows through Tianjin, many Chinese sit and enjoy picnics. Families with children, the elderly, and many young people are there, too. Some are dancing. At the same time, many restaurants around town are half-empty just like the shopping malls and showrooms earlier in the day. Perhaps the restaurants are just too expensive. Or perhaps right now many Chinese consumers would rather save their money for a rainy day. Whatever it is, their homemade food is likely just as tasty as anything they would get in a sit-down restaurant.
