Norwegian businesses seek closer China ties in maritime, green sectors at CIFTIS

Norway has sent its largest-ever delegation to the China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) in Beijing as the country has been designated as a 'guest of honor' at the event, which Norwegian businesses see as a key platform to deepen ties in maritime industries and sustainable development.

The five-day fair opened on Wednesday at the Shougang Park, a former industrial site which has been extensively renovated and even served as a venue for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. The fair has drawn participants from 90 countries, regions and international organizations, with over 1,800 companies exhibiting on-site.

Given its guest country of honor status, Norway has brought a sizable delegation which includes more than 20 companies, ranging from the energy giant Equinor, to micro-enterprises with just a single employee.

Norwegian Ambassador to China Vebjorn Dysvik attended the opening ceremony of Norway's pavilion and said the CIFTIS fair offers a great platform to develop old partnerships and create new ones.

Dysvik pointed to the broad potential for cooperation in the maritime sector, noting China's standing as a major ocean economy and Norway’s rich maritime heritage. He added Norway also seeks to expand collaboration with China across green and low carbon fields.

"Now we see a strong development in the maritime sector. The second sector, which is really strong is green technology. Of course we cannot match China's industrial size, but we have competence and niches, also in the services sector, which are very complementary to what Chinese companies need," he said.

At the CIFTIS venue, Henning Kristoffersen, commercial counselor at the Norwegian Embassy, explained how Norwegian exhibitors are localizing their businesses for the Chinese market.

Among them is the Oslo-based Yara, a global fertilizer producer that has spent years developing sustainable products and continues to expand its investment in China, with its first innovation lab set to open in Beijing this December.

At the Norway pavilion's dedicated nutrition and health section, fish oil and krill oil products drew consistent crowds. Kristoffersen said the rising demand for high quality, healthy and organic goods among Chinese consumers has created vast market opportunities for Norwegian enterprises.

"The Chinese people are very concerned about health, what they put into their body, what they drink, what they eat. Chinese people, to our experience, are very concerned about the quality. For Norway, these products come from our oceans. And Norway is very known for the purity of the nature, the cleanliness, the sustainable development in these types of industries. So, we are here because we want to give an opportunity for Norwegian businesses, to create concrete business opportunities," he said.

Reflecting on those market opportunities, an exhibitor representing a leading Norwegian nutrition company said he has already connected with multiple prospective Chinese partners during the exhibition and is evaluating long term investment possibilities.

"The world is a little bit unstable economically wise. But I've noticed that China actually is able to keep growth. Even though it's unstable in the rest of the world. And this is very interesting because it shows that long-term investment is still possible in China," said the exhibitor.

Norwegian businesses seek bigger ties with China at CIFTIS in maritime, green sectors: diplomats

The 2026 China Business Report, released on Thursday by the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai (AmCham Shanghai), revealed a significant rebound in business confidence among its surveyed member companies operating in China.

Business confidence bounced back markedly, as 58 percent of respondents expressed optimism about China's five-year business outlook, up 17 percentage points year on year, the report said.

Profitability rebounded to its highest level since 2019, with 78 percent of respondents profitable in 2025, an increase of 7 percentage points from the 2024 level, according to the report.

As business confidence rebounded and more companies reported profits, investment confidence in China also strengthened, resulting in 28 percent of respondents increasing investment in China last year, the highest level in four years.

Improved market sentiment is also reflected in a positive assessment of China's business environment. Fifty-five percent of surveyed companies said the business environment in China is transparent, up 7 percentage points year on year.

Jeffrey Lehman, chair of AmCham Shanghai, attributed the positive change to eased bilateral tensions and shared expectations for more stable and reciprocal economic and trade relationship, as the two leaders of states reaffirmed multiple times in the past year.

"We do our surveys In June, and so in June of 2025, there was a lot of anxiety among our members about the geopolitical situation. After that, we had the meeting of the leaders in Busan. We had the summit in Beijing in May, the agreement between the two countries that they would try to create a constructive relationship of strategic stability based on fairness and reciprocity. And that is very reassuring to our members because that suggests that there will be a stable environment in which they can operate well. If anxiety about geopolitics slips, that means then, that the number one concern is the continuing improvement in the quality of domestic competition," he said.

The report is based on AmCham Shanghai's 2026 China Business Survey of 262 member companies.

AmCham Shanghai report shows sharp rebound in business confidence among member companies