Cultural & Business Guide

Looking for a European contact in China

Introduction

The EU and China established diplomatic relations on 6 May 1975, and 2015 denotes the 40th anniversary. This relationship initially began thanks to economic and trade agreement consolidated in 2009 by the High Level Economic and Trade Dialogue, which was complemented with other agreements and most recently enhanced with open dialogues in the framework of High Level Strategic Dialogue and the EU-China High Level People-to-people Dialogue.

In 2013, the EU-China 2020 Agenda for Cooperation was adopted at the 16th EU-China Summit and 4 main areas of cooperation were identified: peace, prosperity, sustainable development and people-to-people exchanges.

Concerning trade and economic exchanges, EU is China's second biggest economic partner and European Union’s main aim in this domain is to consolidate its position and support European companies through different instruments.

Table of contents

Delegation of European Union in China

Concerning the institutions besides embassies and consulates, which are permanently established in China, the European Union is represented by the Delegation of European Union in Beijing.

The Delegation was established in October 1988 and it is also accredited to Mongolia.

As representative of European Union, it has diplomatic privileges and immunities with the Head of Delegation accorded full ambassadorial status. As stated on their website: “the Delegation is responsible for the conduct of official relations between China and the European Union. In all matters pertaining to the European Union, the Delegation works closely with the diplomatic missions of the EU Member States.” .

Actually, it does not deal with trade promotion or other issues which are currently handled by the Member State embassies or consulates, but it facilitates the operation and development of bilateral co - operation agreements.

The Delegation has different sections, including sections such as Trade and Investment, Science and Technology, Development and Cooperation, Agriculture, and Finance.

Contacts:

Delegation of the European Union to China
15 Dongzhimenwai Dajie, Sanlitun, 100600, Beijing
Telephone: + 86-10-84548000
Fax: + 86-10-84548011, 
http://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/china/index_en.htm

Commercial Departments in Governmental Agency (embassies and consulates)

All embassies and consulates have a Commercial or Economic Department. Their main function is providing support for companies in different domains, and promoting the economic interest of its own country. This department is a reference point for each citizen who is willing to get detailed information about the state of the art of the economic and trade cooperation between the two countries involved.

As for contacts, it is advisable to check the updated information on-line on the webpage of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of your own country.

Trade Promotion Agency

Most European countries have governmental organizations that promote internationalization of the native companies all around the world. It has a worldwide network with offices that create a strong support to companies that wish to develop their trade and business strategies in the host country. Generally, contacts and links are available on the website of embassies since this kind of organizations are state-owned.

EU SME Centre

The EU SME Centre is a European Union funded initiative to support and assist European SMEs in planning, promoting and developing their business. As stated on their website: “It provides practical information, confidential advice, and training in the areas of business development, legal issues, standards and HR to facilitate market access for European SMEs.” The Centre is managed by 6 partners who thanks to their knowledge of Chinese market and their valuable experiences of coordinating activities. The partners are: Benelux Chamber of Commerce in China, China-Britain Business Council, China-Italy Chamber of Commerce, Eurochambres, European Union Chamber of Commerce in China and the French Chamber of Commerce in China.

Contacts:

Room 910, Sunflower Tower, No.37 Maizidian West Street,
Chaoyang District, Beijing, People’s Republic of China
Postcode: 100125
Tel: (010) 85275300
http://www.eusmecentre.org.cn/it

Chambers of Commerce in China

In China you will find offices of the most important Chambers of Commerce of European Countries.

Most of them provide concrete solutions and support to companies who intend to establish trade and commercial relationships with China. They normally require a payment for the services or a membership fee to have access to their services.

Here is the list of the most known (European) Chambers of Commerce in China:

EUCCC – The European Union Chamber of Commerce in China

European Union Chamber of Commerce in China was established in 2000 by 51 member companies. The key objective of the body was to establish the same way of thinking about business sectors of European companies operating in China.

As stated on their website: “It is a members-driven, non-profit, fee-based organisation with a core structure of 43 Working Groups and Fora representing European business in China”.

The EUCCC numbers more than 1800 members and has branches in 9 cities (Beijing, Nanjing, Shanghai, Shenyang, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Chongqing and Tianjin).

It’s known for its engagement in dissemination of international trade and, what is essential, it connects business associations and chambers of commerce not only from EU but also from 20 other countries from all around the world.

Contacts:

Beijing Lufthansa Center, Office C412, No. 50 Liangmaqiao Road, Beijing, 100125, P.R. China
+86 (10) 6462 2066
http://www.europeanchamber.com.cn/en/home

IPR SME Helpdesk

As most people know, IPR (Intellectual Property Rights) is a very sensitive issue when dealing with China. The China IPR SME Helpdesk is a project funded by European Commission Directorate for Enterprise and Industry under the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme that aims to support SMEs in protecting and reinforcing their property rights when dealing with China. On the multilingual portal there are materials, surveys, tools and information about IPR.

Contacts:

http://www.china-iprhelpdesk.eu/it

European Business Organization Worldwide Network

As stated on its website “the EBOWWN is a common platform for European Business Organizations to share information and best practices among the network and its stakeholders in order to provide first-rate services to European businesses, in non-EU markets”. Its main goal is to provide a common platform to share best practices to facilitate business and access to non EU markets.

Contacts:

The Secretariat
C/o International Department of Business Europe
Avenue de Cortenbergh, 168 - 1000 Brussels - Belgium
http://www.ebowwn.com/

Among others

Among all the other possibilities (besides the services provided by consultancy companies) you may find a sectoral organization that will assist business only in specific domains such as:

  • COCIR: supports sustainable development of international standards and control systems for medical devices and healthcare IT systems.
  • CAC/PT: A team of advisors creating regulations and advocacy for European cosmetics sector.
  • Cheese Industry Desk is composed of eight leading cheese producers and trade associations. Its mission is to represent manufacturers in business issues and at the same time is a mediator in disputes and mutual communication among all members.
  • EHI: EHI Desk aims to provide a platform for European Heating companies that are active in China to promote their shared experience, debate on standardization, have mutual exchange of technology and collaborate with Chinese authorities and institutions.
  • European Wood: It is a cooperational effort between the national wood promotion organizations in Austria, France, Germany, Norway and Sweden. It has a branch in Beijing to promote and develop operation in China. Its head office is in Brussels.

External links

Project 2014-1-PL01-KA200-003591