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June 26, 2015

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Home » City specials » Ningbo

Ningbo sees success in building ties with CEEC

By Vera Ye | June 26, 2015, Friday | Print Edition

Ningbo, a seaport on the northeast coast of Zhejiang Province, has made substantive progress in boosting economic ties between China and 16 countries in central and eastern Europe, adding momentum to China’s “One Belt, One Road” initiative.

The first China-CEEC Investment and Trade Expo took place in Ningbo in early June, bringing together government officials and representatives of business enterprises from 16 countries in central and eastern Europe. An array of agreements in investment, trade and cultural exchanges were signed.

The central and eastern European countries comprise Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia.

Representatives from more than 70 government agencies and companies in the CEEC held talks with their Chinese counterparts. The expo itself featured 132 projects in sectors such as infrastructure, tourism, machine manufacturing, food and pharmaceuticals.

The five-day event, which ended on June 12, also included a consumer products fair, which attracted over 360 exhibitors from the 16 countries. They displayed commodities ranging from well-known wines and crystal glassware to foodstuffs and cosmetics. More than 1,200 domestic buyers attended the fair.

The aim of the exhibition was to expand burgeoning trade and cooperation, and help built the overland and maritime Silk Road project, which is called “One Belt, One Road.” Zhejiang Province wants to lift its profile in those processes.

“‘One Belt, One Road’ is not only in China’s interests, but also should benefit all countries and regions along the Silk Road,” said Zhang Yan, vice secretary-general of the Ningbo Municipal People’s Government.

Flourishing business ties

The “One Belt, One Road” initiative was proposed by President Xi Jinping in 2013 to boost economic ties, deepen cooperation and expand development in the Eurasian and Southeast Asian regions.

Ningbo, a major Chinese trading center for 2,000 years, has been building commercial ties with CEEC countries, which are significant players in the modern Silk Road.

In 2014, trade between Ningbo and the CEEC amounted to US$2.44 billion, or 5 percent of the national volume.

By the end of 2014, Ningbo had approved 72 foreign investment projects from the CEEC, with contractual value of US$156.21 million. Over the same period, 34 Ningbo enterprises have invested a combined US$20.37 million in the 16 CEEC countries.

Organized by the Ministry of Commerce and the Zhejiang provincial government, the opening of the first China-CEEC Investment and Trade Expo turned a new page for trade ties.

“Unlike previous expos, which mainly focused on exploring business opportunities for domestic enterprises, efforts this time were aimed at helping CEEC countries attract Chinese investment, trade, tourism and cultural exchanges,” Zhang told Shanghai Daily during an interview on the sidelines of the event.

Expo organizers said they have received positive feedback from participants about the event, and a similar expo is planned next year.

During the event, agreements were signed between the Ningbo Economic and Technical Development Zone and a development zone in Bydgoszcz, Poland; and between Cixi Coastal Development District and the Euro-Chinese Economic Development Zone in Bulgaria. The agreements will allow exchange of business interests and encourage cross-border investment.

To facilitate the import of products from CEEC countries through the port at Ningbo, the Ningbo Bonded Zone will set up a logistics park with bonded warehouses and cross-border e-commerce platforms.

The logistics park aims to attract 500 enterprises engaged in bilateral trade between China and the CEEC in the next three to five years, with annual trade volume expected to reach US$1 billion.

Meanwhile, an industrial park will be established on a 1-square-kilometer site in the Cixi Coastal Development District. The park is designed to attract high value-added industries such as advanced machinery manufacturing, electronic information businesses, environmental equipment manufacturers and auto parts makers from the CEEC.

Ningbo also leveraged its strength in e-commerce to expand cooperation with the CEEC. Since Ningbo was selected as a pilot city for cross-border e-commerce services in late 2013, trading volume has reached 1 billion yuan (US$161 million), ranking it at the top of other pilot cities.

During the expo, a conference between CEEC commodities producers and local e-commerce companies attracted more than 200 attendees. Both sides explored potential links to expand distribution of CEEC products and diversify purchasing channels for local companies.

Ningbo also sought to strengthen cooperation in the spheres of culture, heritage conservation and tourism.

“The CEEC countries are rich in historic and heritage culture, but most of them remain untapped by Chinese tourists due to a lack of convenient flights,” said Zhang.

Ningbo travel agencies have started to explore and design tourist packages to CEEC countries. The government is also encouraging airlines to open more direct flights between Ningbo and CEEC countries.

“Investment, trade, tourism and cultural exchange are the focus of bilateral cooperation between Ningbo and the CEEC,” said Zhang, “Targeted policies have been introduced to facilitate flows of goods, capital and people.”

Zhang said the Ningbo city government will spend 85 million yuan a year promoting closer ties between the city and the CEEC.

Ningbo also hosted the 17th China Zhejiang Investment and Trade Symposium and the 14th China International Consumer Goods Fair during the same period. The events witnessed the signing of 33 project contracts, with total investment of US$8.14 billion.

Ningbo


 

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