European Business in China Position Paper 2021/2022 Go back »
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Time2021-09-23 | 14:00 - 16:00
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Venue:The Westin Bund Center Shanghai, 3F Grand ballroom
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Address:
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Fee:Members: Free/100* |
Non Members: 400
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Each member company may receive one complimentary ticket to the Position Paper launch. Additional participants from the same company will be charged RMB 100 per person for admission.
On 23rd September, the European Chamber will release its European Business in China Position Paper 2021/2022, the culmination of six months dedicated work by our 35 working groups and sub-working groups. This year’s Executive Position Paper looks into the 14th Five-year Plan (FYP), and identifies areas of risk and opportunity, both for European businesses and for China’s economy.
China’s impressive recovery amid the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic saw many European firms’ China operations stabilising their headquarters and making up for losses incurred in other markets. A significant number of European Chamber members posted record figures for revenue and profit in 2020, and China’s economy looks set to remain strong for decades to come. According to International Monetary Fund forecasts, China will contribute more than a fifth of global GDP growth over the next five years, meaning its market is simply too important to neglect.
However, there are worrying signs that China’s economy is turning inwards. The 14FYP sets a clear course for the country to reduce its reliance on the rest of the world, before ultimately achieving a high degree of self-sufficiency. The European Chamber believes that this is a calculated risk. China is gambling that it can successfully attain a higher level of innovation and manufacturing capability in the next decade or so that will allow it to lead in the technologies likely to define the future global economy.
Increasing control over the economy and pursuing a ‘go it alone’ strategy that will see China having to deviate further from the bold reform path it first embarked upon more than 40 years ago could have serious repercussions. These include decreased foreign direct investment (FDI), a deceleration of innovation capacity and reduced access to the core technologies China requires to upgrade its value chains. China’s per capita GDP growth would also suffer, and the risk of it getting stuck in the middle-income trap would increase.
In this climate, there are still abundant opportunities for European companies, but identifying and engaging with them requires an increasingly sophisticated understanding of emerging policies. Join this event to find out more about how your industry fits in with China’s strategic plans, and where your company can contribute to its long-term goals.
Agenda
13:30 – 14:00 Registration
14:00 – 14:10 Welcome remarks by Dr Ioana Kraft, General Manager, European Chamber
14:10 – 14:35 Presentation of the Executive Position Paper by Bettina Schoen-Behanzin, Vice President of the European Chamber and Chair of the Shanghai Chapter
14:35 – 15:30 Panel Discussion and Q&A Session
Moderator: Dr Ioana Kraft, General Manager, European Chamber
Panellists:
Dr. Steven Cheng, National Chair, R&D Working Group
Juan Ignacio Garcia de Motiloa, National Vice Chair, Energy Working Group
Peter Corne, National Vice Chair, Environment Working Group
Dr. Michael Tan, National Vice Chair, Legal and Competition Working Group
15:30 – 15:40 Closing remarks by Dr Ioana Kraft, General Manager, European Chamber
Terms & Conditions
Events have limited seating so to ensure your attendance we encourage advance online registration and payment for all events. We cannot guarantee entry to anyone not registered in advance.
All our events are held in English and follow the Chatham House Rule unless otherwise stated.
Cancellation Policy
If you cannot attend an event for which you have registered, please cancel your registration no later than one business day prior to the event. If you fail to notify us of your cancellation in a timely fashion, you will be charged for event costs.
To cancel you can: 1) email yangzhao@europeanchamber.com.cn, or 2) cancel online if you registered for the event through the website
Advisory Council Policy
Members of the Advisory Council may receive complimentary admission to Chamber seminars, conferences and factory visits up to two attendees per event. Additional participants will be charged at the member rate.
Advisory Council members will still be charged the standard member rate for participation in training courses and special events, such as gala balls, government appreciation dinners, or admission to corporate social events/tournaments.
For further information contact Ms Catalina Fernandez Silva at cfernandezsilva@europeanchamber.com.cn
Speakers
Ms. Bettina Schoen-Behanzin
Bettina Schoen-Behanzin entered Freudenberg Group in October 2012. As Regional Representative Asia she has been leading the Regional Corporate Center, based in Shanghai, China and is providing guidance and support for strategic planning and business development for the Freudenberg Business Groups in the region. From March 2008 to September 2012 she served as Managing Director of Wittur Elevator Components, China. She assumed the role of Managing Director of Rittal Electro-Mechanical Technology, China from 2000 to 2008, after having been the General Manager of Rittal in China as well as Sales and Marketing Manager of Rittal in Singapore. She had joined the Rittal Headquarters in Germany in 1992.
Bettina Schoen-Behanzin has acquired a Master degree in Sinology, Business Economics and Political Science at the Ruhr-University in Bochum, Germany. Furthermore, she did Post-Graduate Studies of Chinese and Economics at Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Speaking Chinese fluently, Bettina Schoen-Behanzin has around 25 years of working experience in Asia, mostly in China, leading operational business as well acting in corporate functions. From April 2014 to April 2016 she served as Director of the Board of the German Chamber Shanghai, being reelected in April 2016 and April 2018 as President of the Board of the German Chamber Shanghai. In 2019, she was the first German woman to receive Shanghai Municipal Government’s Magnolia Gold Award.
Dr. Ioana Kraft
Ioana has been based in Shanghai since 2003 where she worked for the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China (European Chamber) from 2004 to 2022. From 2009 to 2022 she served as General Manager of the Chamber’s Shanghai Chapter and was responsible for implementation and development of European Chamber objectives, visibility, and advocacy activities on a regional level in Shanghai and neighbouring regions.
Ioana is currently an Associate Director with X-PM Transition Partners, a leading European Executive Interim and Transition Management firm with teams in Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. X-PM is part of the WIL group, a network of 13 firms operating in 35 countries that deliver interim and transition solutions to clients around the world and offers a unique international “multi-sourcing” model that leverages the assets of each member firm and ensures the best assignments globally.
A German-qualified lawyer, Ioana practiced with a German law firm in Shanghai from 2003 and 2004. She also holds a PhD degree in law from Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf, where she worked from 1999 to 2003 as a Senior Research Assistant focussing on the areas of Civil Law, Insurance Law, Comparative Law, International Private Law and Labour Law.
Dr. Steven Cheng
Steven Cheng got Bachelor Degree in Chemistry from Nanjing University in 1993, and Master Degree in Materials Chemistry from Fudan University in 1996. Then, he studied in the United States and obtained PhD Degree in Chemistry from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in 2001.
Steven Cheng started his career as a researcher in GE Silicones, developing silicone compounds. In 2007, he joined Evonik as Technical Manager of Industry Specialties, focusing on new applications of surfactant products. Subsequently in 2014, he joined Air Liquide as Senior R&D Manager leading the R&D team of Air Liquide in China.
Steven Cheng is now Director of Air Liquide China R&D. Besides managing Air Liquide R&D team in China, Steven is also responsible for building a strong connection with local innovation ecosystem including industry leaders, public research institutes, universities, customers, suppliers and start-ups in China.
Mr. Juan Ignacio Garcia de Motiloa
Juan Ignacio first came to China in 2003 to open a government commercial office in Shanghai to support Spanish companies doing business in China. He entered the private sector in 2007 to set up the first greenfield manufacturing plant in China for the Spanish multi-national automotive engineering company, Gestamp. In 2009, Juan Ignacio relocated to Beijing to become Managing Director for the Spanish wind engineering company, Gamesa (now Siemens-Gamesa). During his time in Beijing, Juan Ignacio became involved with the European Union Chamber of Commerce and led the sub-working group for Renewable Energy companies. He was later elected vice-president of the Executive Committee of the European Chamber (in Beijing). In 2013, Juan Ignacio was asked to return to Spain to take the appointment of Vice-minister of Industry and Energy for his native Basque region. There, he was responsible for the formation and execution of the industrial, energy and international policy of the government.
Juan Ignacio is now back in Shanghai where he is currently vice president and member of the board of Iraeta Energy Equipment company, a Spanish-multinational with a China JV manufacturing energy equipment mainly servicing the wind power sector.
Mr. Peter Corne
Peter Corne is head of law firm Dorsey & Whitney’s Shanghai office and co-head of Dorsey’s Cleantech Business Group. He is a panelist in several Chinese arbitration and commercial mediation commissions. He conducted as presiding arbitrator the first arbitration between foreign companies in the Shanghai FTZ under SHIAC’s then revolutionary new rules and similarly as mediator conducted the first mediation in the FTZ between foreign companies in the FTZ Court. He is also Adjunct Professor at NYU Shanghai teaching International Mediation and Arbitration.
Mr. Michael Tan
Michael has more than 20 years of experience in advising international companies on their operations in and with China. He has profound experience advising industrial clients in various sectors, covering all legal aspects of a typical investment deal like market entry and joint ventures, M&A restructuring and exit. Throughout his two decades’ practice, Michael has been gradually converging his energy on technology driven business and has built up his reputation and connections in the circle.
As the first Chinese partner of Taylor Wessing, Michael is now heading the firm's TMC practice for China. Besides his expertise regarding general corporate and commercial matters, he specializes in IT regulatory and data/privacy protection areas. Michael holds CIPP/E certification as granted by the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP). At the same time, he frequently publishes articles and comments on IT and technology related legal topics.
Michael is National Vice Chair of the Legal & Competition Working Group under the European Chamber of Commerce. He also serves as an arbitrator of the Shanghai International Arbitration Center.
Michael studied law at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing (UIBE), China, where he also completed his LLB and LLM degrees in 1997 and 2000 respectively. In 2006, Michael received his law doctorate from UIBE. In 1997, Michael was admitted to the Chinese bar. After practicing in domestic law firms, he worked in the Beijing office of a major international law firm from 2000 to 2002. In 2002, he joined Taylor Wessing in the Shanghai office. As of 2007, he has been appointed as a partner of Taylor Wessing.