EU-China Economic Relations - Foundation Office China
In his welcoming speech, Mr. Zhang Xiaoqiang, Executive Vice Chairman and Director of the Executive Board of CCIEE, stressed the importance of enhanced cooperation between the EU and China. According to him, it is particularly important to convert this willingness to cooperation more effectively into practical action, especially in the light of the pandemic's continuing impact on global economic and social development and the rapidly changing international situation. Michael Winzer, Chief Representative of the KAS Beijing Office, emphasized in his subsequent welcoming address the importance of the EU-China Investment Agreement for bilateral cooperation. In view of the current geopolitical developments, cooperation between the EU and China is confronted with many practical difficulties and problems, but there should be further optimism for the future, said Winzer.
During the first panel, the German and Chinese speakers discussed the impact of the pandemic on the world economy, how the EU and its member states as well as China should react to it and what the prospects for economic recovery are. Prof. Dr. Rolf Langhammer, former Vice-President of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, presented the differences between the global financial crisis of 2008 and the global recession in 2020 caused by the corona pandemic, and gave a comprehensive overview of the EU's measures against the economic consequences of the pandemic.
Chen Wenling, Chief Economist of CCIEE and Senior Researcher of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), also pointed out the increasing importance of international cooperation in the face of uncertainties such as the spread of the pandemic, the outcome of the US elections and local and regional conflicts. EU-China cooperation should become a model for international cooperation and provide a stimulus for the recovery of the world economy, he said.
On the question of how to promote consumption, Jens Fuhrmann, representative of the Deutsche Bundesbank at the German embassy in Beijing, pointed out the importance of the social safety net. A comprehensive and stable social welfare net could give consumers a feeling of security and promote consumption, according to Fuhrmann.
In the second panel, EU and China experts focused on the prospects for EU-China economic cooperation, particularly in view of the prospect of signing the EU-China Investment Agreement. Alicia GarcΓa-Herrero, Senior Fellow at Bruegel, proposed a stronger EU-China "Joint Leadership" on specific issues such as climate change and world trade order issues to give a positive impetus to bilateral relations.
Sun Yongfu, former Director of the European Department of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), pointed out that there is still a lot of room for cooperation in the investment field and that there is still hope that both sides will take flexible and pragmatic steps to achieve the signing of the investment protection agreement before the end of the year. Mr. Zhang Yansheng, Chief Researcher at CCIEE, also stressed the importance of the agreement. He outlined the evolution process from the Bilaterial Investment Treaty (BIT) to the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI), and highlighted the concerns of both sides on key issues such as market access arrangements during the negotiation process. He further expressed his hope that EU-China exchanges would be enhanced by more academic seminars such as this and other exchange channels with a view to reaching a comprehensive agreement on the protection of reciprocal investments as soon as possible.
On the European side, Stefan GΓ€tzner, Chief Representative Greater China of the Federation of German Industries (BDI), pointed out that EU-China cooperation is hampered by a variety of geopolitical and economic factors. In this context, he described the central demands of the European side on the investment protection agreement. Henning Speck, foreign and security policy adviser to the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag, stressed that when concluding investment protection agreements, not only economic interests but also political factors should be taken into account and that although it is important to reach an agreement as soon as possible, the quality of the agreement should be prioritized.
In his welcoming speech, Mr. Zhang Xiaoqiang, Executive Vice Chairman and Director of the Executive Board of CCIEE, stressed the importance of enhanced cooperation between the EU and China. According to him, it is particularly important to convert this willingness to cooperation more effectively into practical action, especially in the light of the pandemic's continuing impact on global economic and social development and the rapidly changing international situation. Michael Winzer, Chief Representative of the KAS Beijing Office, emphasized in his subsequent welcoming address the importance of the EU-China Investment Agreement for bilateral cooperation. In view of the current geopolitical developments, cooperation between the EU and China is confronted with many practical difficulties and problems, but there should be further optimism for the future, said Winzer.
During the first panel, the German and Chinese speakers discussed the impact of the pandemic on the world economy, how the EU and its member states as well as China should react to it and what the prospects for economic recovery are. Prof. Dr. Rolf Langhammer, former Vice-President of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, presented the differences between the global financial crisis of 2008 and the global recession in 2020 caused by the corona pandemic, and gave a comprehensive overview of the EU's measures against the economic consequences of the pandemic.
Chen Wenling, Chief Economist of CCIEE and Senior Researcher of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), also pointed out the increasing importance of international cooperation in the face of uncertainties such as the spread of the pandemic, the outcome of the US elections and local and regional conflicts. EU-China cooperation should become a model for international cooperation and provide a stimulus for the recovery of the world economy, he said.
On the question of how to promote consumption, Jens Fuhrmann, representative of the Deutsche Bundesbank at the German embassy in Beijing, pointed out the importance of the social safety net. A comprehensive and stable social welfare net could give consumers a feeling of security and promote consumption, according to Fuhrmann.
In the second panel, EU and China experts focused on the prospects for EU-China economic cooperation, particularly in view of the prospect of signing the EU-China Investment Agreement. Alicia GarcΓa-Herrero, Senior Fellow at Bruegel, proposed a stronger EU-China "Joint Leadership" on specific issues such as climate change and world trade order issues to give a positive impetus to bilateral relations.
Sun Yongfu, former Director of the European Department of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), pointed out that there is still a lot of room for cooperation in the investment field and that there is still hope that both sides will take flexible and pragmatic steps to achieve the signing of the investment protection agreement before the end of the year. Mr. Zhang Yansheng, Chief Researcher at CCIEE, also stressed the importance of the agreement. He outlined the evolution process from the Bilaterial Investment Treaty (BIT) to the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI), and highlighted the concerns of both sides on key issues such as market access arrangements during the negotiation process. He further expressed his hope that EU-China exchanges would be enhanced by more academic seminars such as this and other exchange channels with a view to reaching a comprehensive agreement on the protection of reciprocal investments as soon as possible.
On the European side, Stefan GΓ€tzner, Chief Representative Greater China of the Federation of German Industries (BDI), pointed out that EU-China cooperation is hampered by a variety of geopolitical and economic factors. In this context, he described the central demands of the European side on the investment protection agreement. Henning Speck, foreign and security policy adviser to the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag, stressed that when concluding investment protection agreements, not only economic interests but also political factors should be taken into account and that although it is important to reach an agreement as soon as possible, the quality of the agreement should be prioritized.
