ICE bridges businesses between two nations
Antonino Laspina has just flown back from a week-long business trip to Qingdao, where he and some well-known Italian chefs helped Shangri-La Hotel Qingdao host an Italian Food Promotion Program.
"This is a program between us and Shangri-La China, aiming to improve the performance and skills of the Shangri-La China hotels in preparing Italian cuisine with the help of our chefs," said Laspina, head of the Italian Trade Commission's (ICE) Beijing office.
The program started in late 2004, and "we expect it to reach all Shangri-La hotels around China, so that the Chinese can taste authentic Italian food and know more about Italy," said Laspina.
Meanwhile, the trade commissioner is also preparing for his next trip this month, to Italy. "I will bring with me five different industry research reports about the Chinese market to Italian companies, showing them the real picture of China," he said.
Connecting businesspeople in China and Italy and helping them know more about each other's markets is the major task of ICE in China.
Business facilitator
"We are acting as a business facilitator," Laspina said.
ICE is a government agency, whose task is to support the strengthening of bilateral commercial and investment ties between Italy and China. ICE operates under the guidance of the Italian Ministry for International Trade, and has over 100 offices throughout the world, including six in China, located in Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Chengdu, Guangzhou and Hong Kong.
"Being an instrument to implement the Italian government policy in China, not only we support Italian exports to China, but we do foster reciprocal investments and long-lasting partnership too." said Laspina.
But "when Chinese economy changes, we change our strategy."
That is why ICE will expand its reach in mid-June to Tianjin, its seventh office in China, as the Chinese government has announced its priority of developing the city into one of the most strategically important destinations in North China.
"Where there are business opportunities, we transform them into action," the trade commissioner asserted.
Exhibitions and seminars are the tools most frequently used by ICE to promote Sino-Italian trade and economic cooperation, said Laspina.
In 2006, ICE organized more than 200 trade events, some on very large scales.
"We have such an event every other day on an average around China," he noted.
The events brought many Italian companies to China, who then gained first-hand information about the vibrancy of the Chinese market and the likely prosperity they would enjoy if they did business here.
ICE also invites Chinese businesspeople to visit Italy annually and participate in fairs and exhibitions.
As the purchasing power of Chinese consumers keeps growing, Italian exports to China - which mainly consist of machinery and technology products - will expand to finished products.
Bilateral trade
More than 60 percent of China's imports from Italy currently comprise technological products and machinery, and about 20 percent is finished goods.
"But Chinese consumers will invest more in finished products like fashion goods and furniture," said Laspina.
Since 2000, trade between China and Italy has seen annual growth of 22 percent. In 2006, bilateral trade reached $24.59 billion, increasing by 32 percent compared with the previous year. In the first quarter of this year, the figure was $6.77 billion.
When Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and the Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi met last September, officials from both sides set the goal of doubling bilateral trade in the next five years, while balancing the two-way trade.
"The annual growth rate in the future will easily stand at over 30 percent, and it is easy to reach the goal," said Laspina.
Although there is more room for the two sides to tap business opportunities, the commissioner believes China and Italy complement rather than compete against each other.
"We produce in a compatible way. For example, China could import machinery products from Italy, and we could also import machinery, but not the sophisticated ones, from China."
Promoting two-way trade is one aspect of ICE's strategy in China. The other aspect is to enhance mutual investment activities.
"We try to keep updating the ideas of Italian companies on what China is really looking like, telling them China is not like 20 years ago and it is time to invest in China," Laspina explained.
While China's economy grows rapidly, the nation also faces a pressing issue that needs to be addressed: that of finding a way to sustain its development rate, i.e. how to have its economy grow steadily without destroying the nation's environment and resources.
"Such a new scenario in China is helpful for Italian companies which are strong in this respect," said Laspina.
Meanwhile, many Italian luxury firms are investing in China and some of them even have production units here.
"There is no product that Chinese people cannot afford. The products will be a good combination, with Italian design and Chinese manufacturing."
Investing in Italy
From the perspective of Chinese companies, Italy would also be a perfect investment destination.
"The more the Chinese are aware of Europe, the more they would look at Italy," Laspina predicted.
In 2010, all European and Mediterranean nations will become part of a free trade area, which will mean imports and exports among these nations will be free of duty. As the European Union (EU) expands east, Italy has come closer to the center of the organization's geographical position, making it a profitable investment location for Chinese companies that wish to conquer the EU market.
Chinese companies such as Haier and COSCO have set up branches in Italy, with many more preparing to do the same or to join hands with Italian partners.
(China Daily 06/05/2007 page26)
