Demonstrating strength of UK-China links

British business has played a robust role in China's economic development - but the extent of its involvement in business, education and culture is not fully known. There are more than 6,000 UK-invested projects in China worth $15 billion, ranking it first among European countries in volume and actual realized value of investment.

China has been the UK's fastest-growing market for export of goods since 2002 and is now the largest outside the United States and Europe. The services trade is also growing rapidly, with a 2-to-1 surplus in the UK's favor. At the UK-China Summit in January of this year Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Premier Wen Jiabao set a formal target of $60 billion in bilateral trade by 2010.

"As patron of the 2008 British Business Awards, I believe we have shown the vitality of British business, and the variety of companies that have been selected reflects the breadth and depth of British commercial expertise on offer in China," said Sir William Ehrman, UK Ambassador to China.