INTERNATIONAL TRADE
David Pearson, Xu Jundong and members of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT)
A week in China
David Pearson, the Chamber’s Head of International – Partnerships, reflects on last month’s China trade mission
DAY 1 - THE JOURNEY AND SETTLING IN This trade mission, my second to China, was organised in the name of Midlands Engine and comprised over 50 delegates from six councils, four universities, one hospital and 26 businesses - quite an eclectic mix. After an uneventful flight to Shanghai, most delegates played safe with
taxis, but three of us decided to try the Maglev train, which takes you from the airport to the outskirts of Shanghai at lightning speed. The train can travel at 400km per hour, however ours took a more
leisurely pace at just 300km per hour. After checking in and a quick shower, a mixed group from Nottingham, Derby and Solihull went out for something to eat before walking to see the famous lights of the Bund. It was rather surprising to observe all the lights being turned off at 10pm and, by ten past, the previously busy promenade was virtually empty.
DAY 2 - SHANGHAI TO NINGBO The day started with a Welcome to China briefing by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). Apart from some interesting information about the Chinese economy, Consul General, John Edwards, gave his three top tips for doing business in China:
1. Download the WeChat app It is the preferred way of keeping in touch following your visit
2. Red wine or white spirit? Red is the best option if you want to do work tomorrow, white is one way of enhancing guanxi (business relations)
3. Be yourself Forget old fashioned protocol - observe normal manners and be both interested and interesting.
I had chosen to spend the day with Nottingham in Ningbo and the four- hour coach ride took us along a 36km road bridge. This is the second longest sea bridge in the world - and yes, China also boasts the longest. When we arrived we were whisked off to a formal meeting with the local
Government, headed up by the local Party Secretary Mr Fuang. Midlands Engine Chairman, Sir John Peace, joined us and our Chinese hosts were impressed when they heard that Sir John is the Queen's representative in Nottingham. It is clear that a fantastic relationship has been forged between all levels of civic and commerce representation in the Nottingham/Ningbo partnership and Sir John's presence enhanced this further. Much credit must go to the leadership team at Nottingham for their
persistence in making this commitment. This meeting was followed by a formal dinner at the hotel with some gorgeous food and lots of toasts being proposed.
18 business network December 2016/January 2017
DAY 3 - NINGBO TO HEFEI This was a full on day. We started in Ningbo by being taken to the Government complex for two meetings. The first was another of the mega-formal meetings so much a part of
doing business in China. Following this, we had a less formal meeting with trade leaders and I
delivered my speech, which went down fine, before being whisked off to the station to catch my train to Hefei. Hefei is the sister city for Derby City Council and I have been working
with them to develop their international strategy, so it was important that I could spend some time in Hefei. I caught the bullet train from Ningbo to Hefei, which is an amazing experience, and so cheap! I met up with the Derby and Derbyshire gang before going into another
formal meeting, this time nominally between the leaders of Anhui Province and the County Council. We were then faced with the most humongous round table we had ever seen and we all tucked into another banquet.
DAY 4 - HEFEI TO SHANGHAI I had arranged meeting with the Vice-Chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) - Anhui Sub Council. CCPIT is the Chinese equivalent organisation to our International
Networks team. Its remit is as the name suggests - the promotion of international trade through various means. Mr Xu and I had a good discussion and are now on first name terms,
which is a real breakthrough. We concluded our meeting by signing a Memorandum of Understanding
(MOU), which is non-binding but is designed to encourage our relationship to develop further in the future. I then met the Derby businesses at the Government building to be
presented with another mega-lunch, which we made good inroads into - it would be rude to refuse, wouldn't it? A quick coach ride to the station and before we knew it we were back on
the very efficient bullet train back to Shanghai. Dinner was taken as an adjunct to the "UK-China Regional Leaders Summit" and then we were all treated to a trip up the recently opened Shanghai Tower, the second-tallest building in the world.
DAY 5 - CHINA OUTBOUND CONFERENCE, SHANGHAI China Outbound is all about UK cities and regions trying to persuade Chinese investors to locate their venture in their particular area. The event was sponsored by Midlands Engine so East Midlands-based speakers featured heavily on the agenda.
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