General

"China's super large market, labor cost advantages, economic growth prospects and other factors, combined with the promotion of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP) coming into force, make overseas international trade enterprises continue to be optimistic about the Chinese market." The survey report "Overseas Enterprises Look at China 2022: Sharing New Opportunities for RCEP" released by HSBC recently gives such a judgment.

According to the analysis of the HSBC report, RCEP has boosted the attractiveness of the Chinese market. More than 80% (82%) of the respondents expect their business in China to grow in the next year, and more than 90% (93%) of the respondents in RCEP member countries expect that the entry into force of the agreement will increase their trade with China.

Wang Yunfeng, President and CEO of HSBC Bank (China) Co., Ltd., said that, "China unswervingly promotes the construction of an open world economy, advocates economic globalization, and actively promotes the liberalization and facilitation of international trade and investment, which not only provides momentum for world economic growth, but also provides strong support for China's own high-quality economic development. As the largest free trade agreement in the world, RCEP plays a pivotal role in promoting regional economic integration. China, as the second largest economy in the world The economy is creating business development opportunities for RCEP member countries and a wider range of global enterprises with its super large market. "

Leading regional economic and trade growth

RCEP is signed by 10 ASEAN countries and China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. Its total population, economic volume and total trade volume account for about 30% of the global total. It is the largest free trade area in the world. Official data shows that since its entry into force on January 1, RCEP has continued to release trade dividends. In the first eight months of this year, China's trade volume with other RCEP member countries reached 8.32 trillion yuan, accounting for 30.5% of China's total international trade.

The relevant investigation of HSBC also further confirmed the role of RCEP in promoting regional trade. It is reported that the survey was conducted among nearly 3400 enterprises in 16 major markets around the world, covering 9 RCEP member countries and 7 major economies in the world, including those enterprises that have businesses in the Chinese market or plan to expand in the Chinese market in the near future.

Among them, more than 90% (93%) of respondents from RCEP member countries believe that this FTA is expected to increase their trade with China, which is particularly significant among respondents from Southeast Asian countries. Almost all respondents from Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines expect that the FTA will promote their trade with China.

Respondents generally agree that RCEP will help reduce costs (92%), stabilize the supply chain (92%) and promote intra Asian trade and business growth (91%). The economic and trade facilitation created by this FTA will also further promote overseas enterprises in other regions to expand their business with China.

At the same time, the overseas enterprises interviewed expect their business income in China to increase by nearly 20% on average in the next year. Among them, the enterprises interviewed in RCEP member countries are relatively more optimistic. Nearly 40% expect their Chinese business to grow by at least 30% in the next year, and about 10% expect their business to grow by at least 50%.

In addition, the survey shows that in markets other than RCEP, more than half (52%) of the enterprises interviewed said that with the gradual release of RCEP dividends, they have plans to expand their business in China in the next 12 months.

Priority investment in technology upgrading

When asked about the investment priorities in the Chinese market, the interviewed overseas international trade enterprises said that they would give priority to technology upgrading and digital construction in the next 12 months, of which more than 40% (43%) planned to focus on technology and innovation, and 39% planned to focus on improving digital service capabilities and digital platforms.

Meanwhile, three quarters of overseas international trade enterprises interviewed said they planned to expand their supply chain in China in the next 24 months. Among them, enterprises in RCEP member countries are more active. 78% of RCEP enterprises have this plan, which is higher than the average proportion of other markets (70%). The interviewed enterprises are also planning to make a number of changes in their supply chain in China, including improving the application of digital technology in supply chain management (91%), more regional distribution (89%) and further focusing on strategic suppliers (89%).

In the process of transformation of new and old driving forces, emerging industries and traditional key industries will develop together to provide new impetus for China's economic growth. According to the interviewed overseas enterprises, the fastest growing industries in China in the next year are information technology (44%), energy (41%), online retail and e-commerce (32%) and industrial industries including construction, engineering and transportation (32%).

Overseas enterprises are also optimistic about the opportunities created in the process of China's implementation of the "double carbon" goal. In terms of green and low-carbon related fields, overseas enterprises believe that China's most potential industries include renewable energy (46%), electric vehicles (42%), energy-saving products (42%) and circular economy related industries (39%).