Companies vote with their feet on best locations

THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS giant Huawei Technologies Co Ltd has denied the rumor that it is planning to move its headquarters out of Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong province, due to the soaring price of land. Beijing News commented on Tuesday:

Although Huawei has ruled out the possibility of relocating its headquarters, the local district government recently stressed the need to serve the communications giant and keep it in Shenzhen. Such affection has a lot to do with a recent government report which highlights Huawei's considerable contribution to local growth. The company contributed about 14 percent of the district's total industrial output value in the first two months of this year.

It is understandable that local governments fight over major enterprises such as Huawei, which are inclined to vote with their feet and locate their businesses in cities offering better services and infrastructure, as well as preferential policies.