In March, the looks turned to the “two sessions” of China. While the global economic recovery remains fragile on the background of the rise in protectionism, China reaffirms its commitment to “further expand its high -level opening”, thus offering welcome stability. In the government’s activity report, Prime Minister Li Qiang insisted on the country’s unshakable determination: “Whatever the external changes, we will persist in the practice of opening. The opening of the regulatory framework will continue step by step, the autonomous opening will widen in good order, as well as the unilateral opening, stimulating reform and development. The continuous reduction of the negative list for access to foreign investments and the gradual opening of the services sector demonstrate this will.
On March 23, during the opening ceremony of the China 2025 development forum, the Prime Minister called for a reflection on the ways of sustainable global development in the face of geopolitical and economic changes. A promise particularly caught attention: that of a reinforced integration of foreign investors in the Chinese economy. Proof of this dynamic, the 2025 edition of the Forum broke a participation record, with an unprecedented number of multinationals present. Several leaders have presented increased investment plans. Establishing R&D centers in China in order to accelerate their deployment in the high -tech sectors and with high added value is now a strategic choice shared by many foreign companies.
Ola Källenius, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Mercedes-Benz Group AG, praised these opening policies. The group plans to seize the opportunities generated to intensify its partnerships and multiply its investments. In recent years, Mercedes-Benz has considerably strengthened its innovation capacities with its R&D centers in Beijing and Shanghai.
As Klaus Schwab, founder of the World Economic Forum pointed out: “China plays a major role in the construction of globalization 4.0”. Its economic opening goes beyond the simple expansion of market access. By regulatory, normative and managerial reforms, it builds a high -level integrated system. For foreign investors, this approach offers a double advantage: privileged access to the vast Chinese market and a strategic lever to reposition themselves in global value chains.
With the abolition of restrictions on foreign investments in the manufacturing industry, alignment with high -level international commercial standards, optimization of transit without visa and the advancement of the “belt and road” initiative (CHs), China goes from an opening in terms of production factors to institutional opening. At the same time, it operates a strategic moult, now carrying a double cap of “world factory” and “global market”. This transformation is observed in fact: the innovations presented at the International Import Exhibition of China quickly turn into marketable products, while the ports and railways of the ICR display a sustained activity. All in all, each new opening measure and each concrete cooperation project help to anchor the country more deeply in economic globalization.
