Multinationals still have a key part to play

China's market, the largest in the world for many consumer brands, is obviously strategically important to multinationals. For many years, leading global companies, including Volvo Group, have benefited by developing their operations through investment and cooperation with local partners.

Nowadays, China's economic transformation has picked up speed with the government's efforts to upgrade the country's industrial base in order to develop new growth. This has set the stage for the Belt and Road Initiative, which reflects the top-down thinking of driving regional and global economic development through international integration.

Simply put, the Belt and Road Initiative, which was proposed in 2013, is a trade and infrastructure network that includes the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. The network connects Asia, Europe and Africa and passes through more than 60 countries and regions with a population of about 4.4 billion.