People visit the outdoor exhibition venue of the sixth Qingdao Multinationals Summit in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, on June 19, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng)
BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Co-hosted by Shandong Provincial People's Government and the Ministry of Commerce, the sixth Qingdao Multinationals Summit was held in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province from June 18 to 20. The event has received widespread attention and active participation from multinational corporations (MNCs) worldwide, bringing together 570 attendees from 43 countries and regions.
Participants believe that the increasing investment in China by MNCs reflects their firm confidence in the Chinese market. As China cultivates emerging markets and new business opportunities, all parties are eager to deepen collaboration with China.
-- Firm confidence drives commitment to the Chinese market
Wilmar International Limited, a Singapore-based agribusiness company has been ramping up its investment in China since 2018, from an initial investment of 300 million U.S. dollars to a total of 1.8 billion U.S. dollars.
FedEx has been operating in the Chinese market for over 40 years, according to Poh-Yian Koh, senior vice president and president of FedEx China. Currently, FedEx has 103 branches, nearly 11,000 employees, and approximately 3,000 delivery vehicles in China.
Belgium-based multinational Bekaert, which entered China in the 1990s, now operates 17 facilities in seven cities, including Qingdao.
According to Masami Nakamura, chairman of the Japan Management Association, praised China's highly diverse supply chain, and expressed hope to boost cooperation with Chinese enterprises and industry associations in relevant sectors.
China's ever-expanding market size and robust economic resilience continue to attract a large number of MNCs. A total of 59,000 foreign-invested enterprises were newly registered in China in 2024, a year-on-year increase of 9.9 percent, with actual utilized foreign capital reaching 116.2 billion U.S. dollars, according to the Ministry of Commerce.
-- Further opening-up supports the growth of MNCs
Seiji Imai, chairman of Japan's Mizuho Financial Group, stated that the Chinese government's efforts to advance market-oriented reforms and go global is creating vast opportunities for MNCs to invest and expand in China.
The UK-based biopharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca has continuously increased its investment, boosted cooperation, and deepened its local footprint in China since entering the Chinese market in 1993, with cumulative investments exceeding 5 billion U.S. dollars.
Currently, China is steadily expanding institutional opening-up with regard to rules, regulations, management and standards, continuously improving mechanisms to protect the rights and interests of foreign investors, and ensuring national treatment for foreign-invested enterprises.
Zhao Bingdi, vice president of Panasonic China & Northeast Asia Company, stated that sales revenue in China now accounts for 24 percent of Panasonic's global total, while China has become Panasonic's largest overseas business base.
The Ministry of Commerce has pledged to further ease market access for foreign investment in more than 10 service sectors, including science and technology, finance, medical care, telecommunications, and culture, further expanding high-standard opening-up.
-- Win-win cooperation draws a new blueprint for development
During the summit, many executives from MNCs expressed that their increasing investment in China symbolizes their confidence in China's growth.
Louis Dreyfus Company, a Netherlands-based agricultural goods processor, will strengthen cooperation with China by transforming the entire agricultural industry chain and building green product and supply chains, thereby contributing to food security, said Zhou Xuejun, global chief commercial officer and APAC president of the company.
Topics such as the low-altitude economy, artificial intelligence, and green and low-carbon development emerged as highlights of the summit. Senior executives from multiple MNCs stated that they are seizing China's strategic opportunities in developing new quality productive forces and accelerating their investments in cutting-edge industries.
In addition, many MNCs are adopting a "China sourcing, global distribution" model, integrating China into their global supply networks. This not only enhances China's role in global industrial collaboration but also positions it as a key hub in international supply chains.
According to the report titled "Multinationals in China: A New Journey of Future Investment and Shared Growth" released by the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation at the summit, carmakers such as Tesla and Volkswagen have continuously increased their local sourcing of components since entering China. As a result, China has become a major global supply base of auto parts.
(Edited by Yang Linlin with Xinhua Silk Road, linlinyanglyn@163.com)
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