MEDIA RELEASE
AUSTRALIAN EMBASSY, BEIJING
MR03/13 30 January 2013
Ambassador Adamson welcomes survey showing growing Australian business interest in China
The Australian Trade Commission (Austrade) and the Australian Chamber of Commerce in China (AustCham) today released the results of a survey of Australian businesses operating in China.
Australian Ambassador to China, H.E. Ms Frances Adamson, welcomed the release of the report – the “Australia China Business Perceptions Survey” – as a useful and timely update on the status and views of Australian businesses operating in, or doing business with, China.
Ambassador Adamson said “This report shows the continued interest of Australian business in the China market. The findings mirror the feedback I and my Embassy colleagues hear on the ground about opportunities for Australian business across the country. Such findings also reinforce the importance of the Australian Government’s recently-released Asian Century White Paper in setting a framework for continued engagement in the region, not just commercially, but also politically, culturally and socially.”
The survey found that 69 per cent of Australian businesses were optimistic about the Chinese economy’s prospects over the next 12 months. Moreover, over half (53 per cent) of surveyed businesses said it was “very” or “extremely” likely they would expand their operations in China.
Australian Trade Minister, Dr Craig Emerson, said Australian companies' optimism about China was well-founded. "China's shift to a consumer-driven growth model is creating huge demand for a range of high-value Australian goods and services, as well as our traditional commodity exports," Dr Emerson said.
“Another key finding of the survey is the interest Australian business is showing in China outside the major centres of Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. These cities remain very important, of course, but Australian business also identified provinces like Sichuan, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shandong and Fujian, and major cities like Chongqing and Tianjin, as locations where they intend to expand. As announced by Prime Minister Gillard in 2012, the Australian Government will be opening a new Consulate-General in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan, later in 2013, which will further support the efforts of business expanding into these fast-growing areas of central and western China. I certainly encourage Australian businesses, whether new to China or here for many years, to look to the second- and third-tier cities, many of which have populations of 10 million or more people and are important markets in their own right.” Ambassador Adamson noted.
The report also noted that the Chinese business environment, while attracting considerable interest, also remained challenging for a variety of reasons. From the survey, chief among these were: access to skilled labour and wage pressures; increased competition from both Chinese and foreign companies, plus challenges around licensing, lack of regulatory transparency and the ability to enforce contract terms.
Ambassador Adamson said “The Australian Government, including through the Austrade network, the Embassy, and our Consulates-General in Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong, looks forward to continuing to support the efforts of Australian business in expanding and succeeding in the China market.”
For a copy of the survey report, please go to: http://austcham.org/sites/default/files/22481%20Austrade%20-%20Business%20Perceptions%20in%20China%20FINAL%203DEC2012%20%282%29.pdf