On Friday 14th November, the China-Britain Business Council (CBBC) held the UK-China Business Forum Chair Handover Luncheon in Shanghai. Senior representatives from the governments of the UK and China, including Matt Burney CMG, His Majesty’s Consul-General in Shanghai, and He Dongbin, Vice Chairman, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, joined over 100 guests to express their thanks and appreciation to Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles KCMG LVO for his tenure as Chair of CBBC, and to welcome Sir Sebastian Wood KCMG, Chairman of Schroder Group China and former British Ambassador to China, as he takes up the role of Chair of CBBC.

Welcoming guests to the luncheon, Sir Sebastian Wood KCMG thanked Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles KCMG LVO for all of his work as Chair of CBBC and noted that ‘trade and investment between our two countries is important for growth and jobs in both countries’, before saying that ‘the more business we do together, the more we align our incentives and the more our two countries can see a shared future together, the more our countries become friends’.

He Dongbin, Vice Chairman, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, thanked the CBBC as a ‘pioneer, builder and witness to the development of our bilateral economic and trade ties’ and highlighted the success of British businesses in China. In particular, he said that the more than 1,900 UK companies in China make up a sixth of all British enterprises in China, and that trade between Shanghai and the UK constitutes one-quarter of the total trade between China and the UK.

Next, in his presentation of KPMG’s survey of foreign MNCs, Mark Harrison, Partner, KPMG, explained that, among respondents to this survey, there is more optimism regarding the Chinese economy than the global economy, most sectors believe China will achieve positive economic recovery in the short-to-medium term and 75% of MNCs will maintain or increase their investment in the Chinese mainland in 2025.

Peter Burnett, Chief Executive, CBBC, then chaired a panel discussion on the future of MNC investment in China, featuring contributions from Gordon Orr, Vice Chair, CBBC & Global Board Member, Swire, Lenovo and Meituan, Vivian Guo, Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship, China Europe International Business School (CEIBS), Noah Fraser, Vice President, US-China Business Council and Mark Harrison, Partner, KPMG.

In a keynote speech on how China’s economy is performing against a backdrop of domestic and international challenges, Dr Su Yue, Chief Economist, China, The Economist Intelligence Unit, then talked through the impacts of the latest trade patterns, tariffs and global supply chain trends.

In a panel discussion chaired by Katie Lee, Senior Adviser, China, HSBC, the focus was on a new chapter for UK-China relations, taking in the views of Matt Burney CMG, His Majesty’s Consul-General in Shanghai, Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles KCMG LVO, former Chair, CBBC and Sir Sebastian Wood KCMG, Chair, CBBC.

After lunch was served, Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles KCMG LVO, the outgoing Chair of CBBC, provided closing remarks that looked back on his tenure and emphasised the importance of the UK-China relationship.

CBBC would like to extend our sincere gratitude to all parties for their support of this event, particularly our Gold Sponsor: Durex from Reckitt; our Corporate Table Sponsors: Aberdeen, Johnson Matthey and the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew; and our In-kind Sponsor: Charbonnel et Walker.