EU Ambassador to China and Shanghai Vice Mayor Attend European Chamber Appreciation Dinner
2018-12-06 | Shanghai
On 6th December, the European Chamber Shanghai Chapter hosted an appreciation dinner to mark the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening up. Over 150 people attended the dinner including HE Nicolas Chapuis, the European Union (EU) Ambassador to China, and Mr Xu Kunlin, the Vice Mayor of the Shanghai Municipal People's Government. As guest of honour, Ambassador Chapuis delivered a keynote speech. In his speech, Ambassador Chapius spoke highly of Shanghai's leading role in piloting reforms while emphasising the challenges that remain for European businesses operating in China despite of many years of advocacy, including, but not limited to, limited market access and insufficient protection of intellectual property rights (IPR).
Prior to the appreciation dinner, Ambassador Chapuis met with Vice Mayor Xu to discuss Shanghai’s business environment. Ambassador Chapuis spoke highly of the Shanghai Municipal Government’s efforts in facilitating business while highlighting some areas which need to be addressed. The areas include the financial services sector, visa restrictions and complex administrative procedures to obtain licenses and permits. Vice Mayor Xu appreciated the Ambassador’s feedback and proposed to organise a workshop between the Chamber members and the relevant Shanghai authorities to discuss and solve these issues. At the end of the meeting, Ambassador Chapuis presented Vice Mayor Xu with a copy of the Shanghai Position Paper 2018/19.