China shows interest in Catalan pharmaceutical sector

From a press release by GlobalTaixue (全球太学)

For the first time a Catalan pharmaceutical company takes part in an international meeting sponsored by the Chinese government. As of today, China is already the world's second largest pharmaceutical market | GlobalTaixue (全球太学), the organizer of the meeting, has started a collaboration with Catalan R+D+i companies in China.

On September 25th, 2012, a delegation from Diater Laboratorios, a company from the Catalan pharmaceutical group Ferrer, met the representatives of the municipal government of the city of Suzhou (China), after the invitation of the city's Mayor. During the meeting both parts discussed potential future collaborations and the development of projects by Diater and the Ferrer group in the Biotechnological Park of Taicang, near Shanghai. The meeting took place during the international conference of pharmaceutical companies, the China Biopharmaceutical Summit, co-organized by the Chinese government and the Chinese-Catalan consulting company GlobalTaixue (全球太学), specialized in the development of R+D+i projects in China. Diater is the first Spanish pharmaceutical company to take place in such event, in which there were 15 companies directly invited by Chinese government coming from United States, Germany, Sweden, Italy, Austria, South Korea, Japan, India, Singapore and Taiwan.

For more information please contact Jack Wang at jack.wang@globaltaixue.com, tel (+86) 18616287131.

For further information on the Chinese-Catalan project of GlobalTaixue (全球太学) and its management team please visit http://www.globaltaixue.com/about-us/management-team/

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="487"] Diater delegates during the meeting with the Suzhou municipal government[/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="461"] Attendants to the round table "New opportunities for the Pharmaceutical Industries in China", held during the China Biopharmaceutical Summit 2012 in Hangzhou[/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="461"] Official reception in Taicang with delegates of the GlobalTaixue international meeting[/caption]

Antonio Miró's Groc Miró brand enters Asian markets through China's richest man

From http://www.expansion.com/2012/10/15/catalunya/1350326641.html (in Spanish)

Catalan designer Antonio Miró will enter Asian markets with the brand Groc Miró through Hangzhou Wahaha Group (杭州娃哈哈集团有限公司), owned by China's richest man Zong Qinghou (宗慶後). The agreement does not include the brand Antonio Miró.

Groc Miró is the brand with which Antonio Miró became well known in Barcelona when he was 20 years old. His first shop, Groc, located in Rambla Catalunya since 1967 has recently been reformed and opened again.

Second edition of China at Barcelona Summit

From http://chinaatbarcelonasummit.com/en/index.php (in English)

After a successful first edition of the China at Barcelona summit in October 2011, the Catalan capital city of Barcelona is again ready to host its second edition on November 8th and 9th, 2012. Again organized by the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, Mazars, and La Caixa, China at Barcelona Summit (CBS) is a first in its kind initiative around Chinese Outbound Foreign Direct Investments (OFDI) in Southern Europe and the Mediterranean and has also been labelled as China Meets the Mediterranean (中國符合地中海). CBS is a special “investment bridge” devoted to provide Chinese companies and China OFDI stakeholders (government, institutions, specialized media) with the opportunity to know about key markets and discover the advantages of Barcelona as operational base. CBS program has been designed to meet the needs of potential new investors, including site visits, informative sessions, one to one meetings with pre-selected local companies and private meetings with local institutions, plus a formal reception and conference around China OFDI in Southern Europe and the Mediterranean region.

Registration is currently open for both Chinese and European companies.

For Chinese readers, the website has also been translated into simplified Chinese and can be accessed through http://chinaatbarcelonasummit.com/zh/index.php

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFyZWwi-lCc&feature=colike

 

Workshop on Chinese investments in Europe to be held in Barcelona

From http://www.eic.cat/wps/PA_Jornades/fitxa.jsp?codi=1085764 (in Catalan)

The College of Industrial Engineers of Catalonia is organizing a free workshop on the Chinese investments in Europe that will be held on October 22nd, 2012 in their headquarters at Via Laietana 39, 5th floor, in Barcelona, at 6:30 pm.

Since Deng Xiaoping opened China's economy to outdoor markets in the early 80's, many western countries have invested there to benefit from the lower salaries, helping to boost Chinese exports worldwide. After 30 years, now it is China that is investing worldwide, thanks to its economic power and the technological knowledge learnt from western companies.

The purpose of workshop is to give a general view of the present situation of the Chinese investments in Europe, specifically analyzing the situation in Catalonia.

The event will be introduced and presented by Mr. Jordi Guix, president of the Commission of Industrial Policy and Technological Innovation and coordinator of the China Working Group, and the discussion will be conducted by Mr. Carles Palomo, Fixing Business Unit Director at Roberlo SA. Invited speakers will be Mr. Jordi Martí, General Director for the China Desk of Mazars Spain and General Director of the China at Barcelona Summit; Eva Aumedes, expert on Asian markets and Director of the program Asian Headquarters of ACC1Ó - Invest in Catalonia, oriented towards the attraction of Chinese investments in Catalonia; and Shanmei Yu, General Director of Keeway Motor España.

For further information, call +34 933 192 304 (from 9 to 14 h and from 16 to 18 h).

Downloadables:

- Registration form for members

- Registration form for non-members

 

Spanish King inaugurates in Barcelona the Hutchinson pier container terminal

King Juan Carlos I of Spain has inaugurated the new pier container terminal managed by the Chinese group Hutchison Port Holdings, the most advanced one of the whole Mediterranean due to its capacity to simultaneously serve several ships. Apart from the King, the ceremony also included the President of the Catalan government Artur Mas; Spanish Minister of Public Works and Transport, Ana Pastor; the President of the Barcelona Port Authority, Sixte Cambra; Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) Executive Director, John E. Meredith; Hutchison Port Holdings  Executive Director for Europe, Clemence Cheng, and the Mayor of El Prat de Llobregat, Lluís Tejedor. The new terminal, called Barcelona Europe South Terminal (BEST) will have 100 hectares, a 1500-metre berthing line and a capacity to hold 2.65 million TEU per year.

Published the Global Competitiveness Report 2012-2013

From http://www.weforum.org/issues/global-competitiveness/index.html (in English)

 

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="271"] Global Competitiveness Report 2012-2013[/caption]

World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Report 2012-2013 displays very similar rankings to those of the previous year. Just as it also did in the 2 previous years, Taiwan has remained in the 13th position. According to the report, Taiwan's "competitiveness profile is essentially unchanged and consistently strong. Notable strengths include its highly efficient markets for goods, where the economy ranks 8th; its solid educational performance (9th); and its sophisticated business sector (13th), which is inclined to innovate (14th). Strengthening competitiveness will require continued improvements to the economy’s institutional framework as well as stabilizing its macroeconomic environment, which would
require fiscal consolidation to reduce the budget deficit" (from http://www3.weforum.org/docs/CSI/2012-13/GCR_CountryHighlights_2012-13.pdf).

In an East Asian context, Taiwan is behind Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong, and in front of Malaysia, South Korea and China. In the global ranking, Switzerland and Singapore remain at the top 2 positions, whereas Hong Kong moves up from position #11th to 9th and  Japan loses 1 place, from #9 to #10, respectively. South Korea improves its position from #24 to #19, whereas Malaysia and China both move downwards from #21 to #25 and from #26 to #29. Spain's position has also remained stable at #36 during the last year.

According to the report, Singapore "retains its place at 2nd position as a result of an outstanding performance across the entire Index. The country features in the top 3 in seven of the 12 categories of the Index and appears in the top 10 of three others. Its public and private institutions are rated as the best in the world for the fifth year in a row. It also ranks 1st for the efficiency of its goods and labor markets, and places 2nd in terms of financial market development. Singapore also has world-class infrastructure (2nd), with excellent roads, ports, and air transport facilities. In addition, the country’s competitiveness is reinforced by a strong focus on education, which has translated into a steady improvement in the higher education and training pillar (2nd) in recent years, thus providing individuals with the skills needed for a rapidly changing global economy" (from http://www3.weforum.org/docs/CSI/2012-13/GCR_CountryHighlights_2012-13.pdf).

Hong Kong "rises to 9th position while slightly improving its score. The territory’s consistently good performance is reflected in very good showing across most of the areas covered by the GCI. As in previous years, Hong Kong tops the infrastructure pillar, reflecting the outstanding quality of its facilities across all modes of transportation and
its telephony and electricity infrastructure. Moreover, the economy’s financial markets are second to none, revealing high efficiency and trustworthiness and stability of the banking sector. The dynamism and efficiency of Hong Kong’s goods market (2nd) and labor market (3rd) further contribute to the economy’s very good overall positioning. To maintain and enhance its competitiveness going forward, continued improvements in two important areas—higher education (22nd) and innovation (26th)—will be necessary. Although the quality of education in Hong Kong is good (12th), participation remains below levels found in other advanced economies (53rd). Improving educational outcomes will also help boost Hong Kong’s innovative capacity, which remains constrained by the limited availability of scientists and engineers (36th), among other things" (from http://www3.weforum.org/docs/CSI/2012-13/GCR_CountryHighlights_2012-13.pdf).

And about China, "it loses some ground in this year’s edition of the Report. After five years of incremental but steady progression, it has now returned to its 2009 level. The country continues to lead the BRICS economies by a wide margin, ahead of second-placed Brazil (48th) by almost 20 ranks. Although China’s decline is small—its overall score barely changes—it affects the rankings of every pillar of the GCI except market size. The deterioration is more pronounced in those areas that have become critical for China’s competitiveness: financial market development (54th, down 6), technological readiness (88th, down 11), and market efficiency (59th, down 14). In this latter pillar, insufficient domestic and foreign competition is of particular concern, as the various barriers to entry appear to be more prevalent and more important than in previous years. On a more positive note, China’s macroeconomic situation remains very favorable (11th), despite a prolonged episode of high inflation. China runs a moderate budget deficit; boasts a low, albeit increasing, government debt-to-GDP ratio of 26 percent; and its gross savings rate remains above 50 percent of GDP. The rating of its sovereign debt is significantly better than that of the other BRICS and indeed of many advanced economies. Moreover, China receives relatively high marks in health and basic education (35th) and enrollment figures for higher education are also on the rise, even though the quality of education—in particular the quality of management schools (68th)—and the disconnect between educational content and business needs (57th) in the country remain important issues" (from http://www3.weforum.org/docs/CSI/2012-13/GCR_CountryHighlights_2012-13.pdf).

The full report can be downloaded as pdf from the World Economic Forum website.

Chinese holdings settle in Catalonia

From http://www.expansion.com/2012/08/19/catalunya/1345404917.html (in Spanish)

From the technology company Huawei to the financial giant ICBC (Industrial and Commercial Bank of China), the main Chinese companies are starting to settle in Catalonia.

ICBC, the Chinese bank that has become the largest financial corporation in the world by profit and market capitalization, has rented a space in Barcelona with the intention of opening their first office in October. At the same time, Hutchison Port Holdings is investing up to € 500 million to enlarge the capacity of the Port of Barcelona, whereas the telecom giant Huawei is currently evaluating the chance to install a repair and post-sales service for their products in Europe beside the former Sony factory in Viladecavalls.

Until now, Chinese investments in Catalonia have been scarce, mostly focused on restaurants and small shops. According to Spanish Ministry of Economy, in 2011 Chinese investments in Catalonia did not even reach € 500,000, whereas Catalan investments in China reached € 790 million in the same period.

However, the situation is starting to change and automotive and telecommunication industries are becoming the two main gates for Chinese investments in Catalonia. Tyre producer Double Star has reached an agreement with a Catalan partner to open a factory in the Maresme county, northeast of Barcelona. And the fact that the city of Barcelona has chosen to be the Mobile World Capital is attracting several companies, among which Taiwanese Toro Development Limited.

Finally, the Chinese group Huayi has acquired the Catalan compressor manufacturer Cubigel, located in Sant Quirze del Vallès, after a struggle with another Chinese company, Donper.