Attendees at a recent China-UK investor forum in London have hailed the potential business opportunities which are arising amid warming ties between the two sides.
Hosted by the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF) and held last Tuesday, the event brought together more than 100 representatives from the government, industry and academia to explore opportunities in deepening bilateral cooperation.
China's Ambassador to Britain Zheng Zeguang made a keynote speech in which he said China's development in building a strong domestic market, cultivating new growth drivers, expanding high-standard opening-up and accelerating green transformation provides new opportunities for cooperation between the two countries.
Noting that the business communities in China and Britain have always been a strong force in promoting bilateral relations, Zheng expressed his hope that stronger ties could help expand trade in goods and services, consolidate two-way investment, and enhance third-party market cooperation.
He also encouraged enterprises from both sides to seize opportunities and expand cooperation in green finance, fintech, asset management, insurance and other areas.
Addressing the event, OMFIF Chairman David Marsh said Britain is in a good position to take the lead in promoting a renewed European-Chinese partnership. Opportunities for deeper China-Britain collaboration lie in many areas, such as finance, artificial intelligence, communications, transport and energy, he also stated.
Ties between the two countries were given a boost as British Prime Minister Keir Starmer paid an official visit to China back in January, which marked the first trip by a UK prime minister to the country in eight years.
During that visit, the two sides pledged to strengthen bilateral ties, while China also later announced it would introduce a unilateral visa-free policy for UK nationals in order to further facilitate cross-border travel.
At the investor forum, participants also shared their views on the internationalization of the Chinese yuan and highlighted new opportunities for business cooperation between China and the UK.
"When it comes to renminbi (RMB), more RMB is traded in London than anywhere else in the world after Hong Kong and [mainland] China itself. And I think with what's going on in the world, you can see more and more people veering towards RMB. So I think the momentum is very strong around the RMB and China, and I think that will continue," said William Russell, a former Lord Mayor of the City of London.
"The warming of relations at the political level between the two countries has led to an increase in business cooperation. Many of the Chinese clients I have encountered have begun to increase their investment in the UK. At the same time, this is reciprocal, as British companies are also increasing their investment in China," said Charles Wang, a consultant for the British law firm Mishcon de Reya LLP.
Investors hail growing business opportunities amid improving China-Britain ties
