Multinationals eye opportunities in China’s emerging sectors at Qingdao summit

Enterprises at the sixth Qingdao Multinationals Summit (QMS) showcased their keen interest in China's emerging industries, positioning themselves to leverage the nation's economic transformation and upgrading for expanded investments.

Themed "Multinationals and China: Connecting the World for Win-Win Cooperation," the three-day summit opened Wednesday in the coastal city of Qingdao in east China's Shandong Province, It gathered representatives from 465 multinational companies, featuring 135 Fortune Global 500 giants and 330 industry leaders spanning 43 countries and regions.

A major highlight of the summit was a policy briefing on equipment renewal in industrial and information technology sectors, with companies looking for ways to leverage these policies to apply cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and drones to upgrade their production processes.

Multinationals also expressed interest in emerging industries and fields, from advanced agricultural irrigation and green energy to AI and the silver economy.

"China's market is a vast one, especially in terms of consumption, which we find particularly interesting. We are willing to make active efforts to help Qingdao's products expand into overseas markets," said Matsui Manabu, president of Itochu Corporation.

"We in Saudi Arabia, luckily we have five economic zones and our government is focusing on a central sector that they are looking to develop. And we always need successful partnership," said Osama Kokandy, executive director of the Saudi-Southeast Asia Business Council.

The Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation released a report at the summit, revealing that the business services sector and the sci-tech research and services sector have both seen rapid growth in foreign investment. Their shares in total utilized foreign capital rose from 6.5 percent and 1.8 percent in 2009 to 22 percent in 2024 and 18 percent in 2023, respectively.

In manufacturing, foreign investment has shifted from traditional sectors like textiles, food processing, and agricultural product processing to high-tech industries, including pharmaceuticals, electronic and communication equipment, medical instruments, and aerospace manufacturing.

Multinationals eye opportunities in China’s emerging sectors at Qingdao summit

President of the Republic of Korea (ROK) Lee Jae Myung has expressed his hope that his upcoming visit to China will help eliminate past misunderstandings and issues, underscoring the importance of ties between the two countries.

At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Lee will pay a state visit to China from Jan 4 to 7. It will be Lee's first visit to China since he took office.

In an interview with China Media Group (CMG) in Seoul on Wednesday, Lee acknowledged the existing misunderstandings and issues between the two countries, noting that addressing these issues is a key goal of his visit.

"The current international landscape is turbulent, with escalating issues among various countries. In this context, the relationship between the Republic of Korea and China holds significant importance for us. the ROK and China are deeply interconnected in many areas, including history, economy, geopolitics, politics and security. Northeast Asia's peace, stability, mutual respect, and common prosperity are crucial for both countries," said Lee.

"Admittedly, there have been some misunderstandings and issues between the ROK and China, which have hindered the development of bilateral relations to some extent. Therefore, the purpose of my upcoming visit to China is to minimize or eliminate these past issues, foster a leap in our bilateral relations to a new level, and solidify the ROK and China as partners that mutually support each other's development," he said.

ROK President hopes to reduce misunderstandings with China during upcoming visit