Foreign executive welcomes improvements to biz environment

Ludovic Weber, CEO of Saint-Gobain Asia Pacific, said that the proposals to improve China's business environment was a topic from the fifth session of the 13th National People's Congress that excited him the most.

The proposals were part of the government's annual work report delivered by Premier Li Keqiang.

Weber said that he believes many foreign businesses like Saint-Gobain, a French industrial conglomerate, will benefit from China's improving business environment.

"Premier Li stated that the government will promote new support measures, including tax incentives, for enterprises. This is fairly encouraging for businesses," said Weber.

According to the Shanghai Business Environment Innovation Pilot Implementation Plan that was issued at the end of last year, the competitiveness of the city's business environment should be of a world-leading standard within three to five years.

The plan stated that the efficiency of governance should be improved in a holistic manner while resource gathering and allocation should be significantly enhanced. In addition, market activity and development quality should be significantly bolstered.

Weber said he noticed that Premier Li had stressed on the importance of continuous growth, and listed measures to achieve growth targets.

"For multinational companies like us, we're encouraged to hear that the growth in the country will be focused more on the environment, involve more research and innovations, and be shared with more people across all regions," said Weber.

He pointed out that he has witnessed how the city's infrastructure is of a high standard, and that the quality of the environment has improved dramatically over the years.

"We clearly see the rapidly rising trend of Chinese consumers wanting more high-quality constructions and caring about comfort, aesthetics, acoustics, insulation, and indoor air quality. Such changes have provided us with more room for development in the China market," he said.