February 4th, the “New Opportunities Forum for China-EU Investment Cooperation” held by China Industry Overseas Development Association, the Belt and Road Service Mechanism and Deheng Law Firm was successfully held in Beijing. Compatti, Investment Counselor of the Portuguese Embassy in China, was interviewed by Global Times before the forum as a guest speaker.
She said that Portugal was very satisfied with the text of the China-EU investment agreement and that the timely completion of the negotiations was a strong signal that the EU and China hoped to continue to strengthen cooperation.
“After long and difficult negotiations, we are very satisfied with this important milestone.
We believe that Portuguese companies will benefit from the fact that China has opened new doors,” Konpati said, which will especially improve the market access of Central European enterprises in manufacturing and services on both sides.
Compatti said that the provisions in the text of the agreement on state-owned enterprises, transparency of subsidies and technology transfer are also very clear.” China’s commitment to sustainable development and labor rights will be important to our society and business community.
On the evening of December 30, 2020, China-EU leaders jointly announced that the China-EU Comprehensive Investment Agreement negotiations were completed on schedule.
The agreement will create a better, more stable, predictable and more open business environment for the EU and China, Compatti added.
I believe that after the implementation of the agreement, Portuguese enterprises may find more protection and better conditions to invest in China. They may consider increasing their influence in the Chinese market.
“Portugal and China have maintained stable diplomatic and economic relations for many centuries.
In the past decade, Portugal has welcomed several major investments in China.
We have seen that projects in many industries have achieved good results,” said the Portuguese investment counselor.
According to the statistics of the China-Portugal Forum, by the end of September 2018, the stock of various investments of Chinese enterprises in Portugal reached 8.257 billion euros, covering energy, finance, insurance, medical care, aviation, aquatic products, and other fields, and provided 42,000 local employment opportunities.
The coronavirus epidemic has caused a major crisis to the world economy. Today, enterprises in various countries are adjusting their supply chains to meet new market demand trends and seeking to diversify market sources to reduce supply risks.
Compatti believes that the Central European Investment Agreement can help enterprises seek more investment cooperation in this historical context, which will certainly help maximize the creation of opportunities.
Wang Huiyao, founder and chairman of the Globalization Think Tank (CCG), also said at the forum that the China-EU investment agreement is a milestone for China itself, China and the United States, China and the world.
It will create more new opportunities, expand the scope of investment, and promote the birth of new industries. The agreement is a historic breakthrough between China and the EU.
It not only shows China’s determination and confidence to promote a high-level opening-up to the outside world, but also actively promotes trade liberalization and investment facilitation, and injects new impetus into economic globalization.
