Lunch with EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson Go back »

2006-11-10 | Beijing

Lunch with EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson

On Wednesday the 8th of November members of the European Chamber’s Advisory Council and Executive Committee had lunch with the EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson at the Capital Club. This provided the opportunity for the Trade Commissioner to inform the Chamber about his meetings with his Chinese counterparts, most notably MOFCOM Minister Bo Xilai. It also allowed for the European Chamber’s Executive Committee and Advisory Council to brief the Trade Commissioner on problems faced by European companies doing business in China.

Mandelson first took the opportunity to discuss the current and potential issues that the European Union faces with regards to trade with China. China is the European Union’s second largest trading partner after the US and is a key priority for the Trade Commissioner. He emphasized the importance of both the European Union and China opening up to trade and the benefits for both countries of a reduction in trade barriers. The meeting Mandelson had with Minister Bo Xilai seemed to be a productive one with both representatives knowing each other much better now after having several meetings over the past couple of years. Mandelson seemed to be in good spirits and positive about the future between EU-China relations.

The Chamber’s Vice-President, Joerg Wuttke, then opened the discussion about the business climate for European companies in China. Wuttke said that Chamber continues to support the work of the EU Commission and will keep on providing examples of where there has been good progress made with regards to WTO commitments and where improvements can be made. As pointed out in the European Chamber’s Position Paper 2006, Wuttke emphasized the importance of a transparent legal system at all levels. Another key issue for European companies doing business in China was in the services sector. These difficulties were highlighted by several short presentations by representatives from different sectors.

Vice-President Dominique de Boisesson made a short presentation on the general investment climate in China. This was followed by a presentation by Banking Working Group Chair Mr. Oliver Brinkman and Insurance Working Group Vice-Chair Mr. Fabrice Lorillon. Discussions followed and Mandelson was keen to know what issues he should be expecting to encounter in the future.

Just before Mandelson rushed away for his flight to Chengdu where he will be visiting the EU-China Partenariat, an EU Commission run project for SMEs, he was presented with the Chamber’s recently published business guide on Corporate Social Responsibility. The lunch provided the Chamber with an excellent platform to highlight to the Trade Commissioner specific issues and demonstrated the continued cooperation the Chamber has with the EU Commission and Delegation here in China. The Chamber continues to be the voice of European business in China.