China will host the first APEC Senior Officials' Meeting and related events in Guangzhou from February 1 to 10, marking the opening of the APEC "China Year" before it is to host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in 2026, Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said at a press briefing in Beijing on Wednesday.
"The APEC Senior Officials' Meeting is the main channel to prepare deliverables for the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting and is held four or five times a year. As the host of APEC in 2026, China will hold the first APEC Senior Officials' Meeting and related meetings in Guangzhou from February 1 to 10," Guo said.
"This will be the first official event of the APEC China Year. The meeting will focus on the theme of the 2026 APEC meetings of 'Building an Asia-Pacific Community to Prosper Together, and the three priority areas, namely, openness, innovation and cooperation. It will fully launch cooperation across APEC's various mechanisms and sectors, stage in-depth discussions on specific cooperation, and help build momentum and deliverables for the APEC Economic Leaders' Informal Meeting scheduled for November," said Guo.
"More than 50 events are planned during the meeting, with around 1,000 participants expected from APEC member economies, the APEC Secretariat and the APEC Business Advisory Council. Preparations are underway smoothly. The host city, Guangzhou, enjoys a long history and is an important gateway of China's opening-up as well as a core city of the Guangdong-Hong-Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. We welcome all journalist friends to actively follow and report the first senior officials' meeting and related events, and to deliver effectively stories about the APEC China Year," Guo said.
Spokesman on APEC "China Year" Guangzhou meeting
Spokesman on APEC "China Year" Guangzhou meeting
Finland's Prime Minister Petteri Orpo is on a four-day official visit to China, leading a delegation of executives from more than 20 Finnish companies seeking new business opportunities.
Christoph Vitzthum, president and CEO of the Finnish food company Fazer Group, is among the delegation. He said the trip to China has provided him a new insight into the development of Chinese consumer market.
"It's remarkable to see how the Chinese consumer has developed and how much we as a company can learn from the Chinese market. Needless to say, the market is vast, but you have to be able to be relevant in a market. And if you see one of the big consumer trends in China, it's the same that we have been seeing in Europe for some years. That's health and well-being - less sugar, less fat, more fiber, more healthy products. As the Chinese economy has developed, as the Chinese middle class has grown significantly, these themes are also now prevalent in the Chinese market," said Vitzthum.
Vitzthum said competition and consumer choice are beneficial for market growth and category expansion allows brands to differentiate themselves and strengthen brand positioning.
"The consumer in general loves choice. I don't see the competition as a problem. I see the category growth, be it in grain-based products or be it in chocolate, is a good thing. If you take for example milk chocolate, the Karl Futzer brand, which we have launched in China. In China, it's the only brand that is made from fresh milk. And when we have studied this with consumers, it resonates very well with the Chinese consumer. By comparing to alternatives, you can really promote your own brand and bring the things that we are standing for," he said.
As part of the agenda of Orpo's visit to Beijing, Chinese and Finnish enterprises signed multiple commercial agreements on Monday at the sixth meeting of the China-Finland Committee for Innovative Business Cooperation.
Business leaders of the two countries engaged in lively discussions on cooperation in many fields including innovation, green development and digitalization.
Fazer CEO sees new opportunities for business cooperation with China
