Helping to unlock the “pent-up demand” of British companies whose access to China has been restricted by the outbreak

Recently, a number of London companies and the city of Nanjing in eastern China’s Jiangsu Province jointly launched the “Go China” program, which aims to help British high-tech companies to do business in China under the strict restrictions of the Newcastle pneumonia epidemic. Industry insiders say that despite the challenges posed by the current outbreak, the outlook for foreign companies investing in China remains bright.

“There is a lot of pent-up demand from British companies wanting to come back to China or do business in China,” Robin Peter Tensen, CEO of Global Technology IP’s China office, told the Global Times on Wednesday. Global Technology IP is a GO China delivery partner. Tensen said the steady growth of foreign direct investment in the face of the new crown pneumonia outbreak is evidence that the global business community still sees great opportunities in China.

According to a statement sent to the Global Times, the program was announced in London by the Nanjing Overseas Innovation Center (NOICL), which provides assistance and resources to British companies in areas such as market research and company registration to get their business into the Chinese market.

Tenson said:- “The whole project is designed to help foreign companies participate in the local industry and the whole ecosystem.”

The first group of 10 companies in the “Go China” program was launched in February of this year. The companies are from the software, healthcare and cleantech sectors, Tenson said. He added that most of the companies are looking for market opportunities and long-term technology development and collaboration in China, despite some current headwinds.

Cleantech company O-wind, for example, sees great potential in China’s highly urbanized environment.

According to this year’s British Chamber of Commerce in China Business Confidence Survey, some 85 percent of companies said they intend to maintain or increase their investment in China in 2022.

NOICL was established to increase the exchange of entrepreneurs between Nanjing and London. Supported by the Nanjing Xingang High-Tech Industrial Park, it works with a network of incubators, gas pedals, business parks and industry associations from across the UK. The Industrial Park is one of China’s national high-tech pioneer development zones and is home to more than 3,000 high-tech companies such as Microsoft, LG and Siemens.

Wu Quan, deputy director of Nanjing Xingang Hi-Tech Industrial Park, noted that the center’s main mission is to create a strong innovation ecosystem between these two large economies with complementary strengths.

“The UK’s strengths in cutting-edge artificial intelligence and the access to large data sets in the Xingang Park can be well combined,” Wu said. He emphasized that the “Go China” program provides companies with the opportunity to visit the field until they have the chance to hire and train a local team.