Business execs focus on connectivity to fuel future

BRICS economies will count on enhanced connectivity to stimulate trade, investment and people-to-people exchange activities, as well as other new growth points to improve regional economic integration, business executives said on Monday.

Oleg Belozerov, chairman of JSC Russian Railways, the country’s rail operator, said Russia is interested in working with China to build a highspeed rail line between Beijing and Moscow, with a network designed to transport goods and passengers.

“The first phase of reaching this massive goal is to build the Moscow-Kazan highspeed railway, whose construction will begin in 2018. We have already included this in the annual work report of the BRICS Business Council for this year,” Belozerov said.

The 770-kilometer-long railway will cost about $22.4 billion. The high-speed trains will run at a maximum speed of 400 kilometers per hour, cutting travel time from the current 14 hours to 3.5 hours.

Russian Railways also wants to develop its digital economy by partnering with China Railways Corp and Alibaba Group to conduct information sharing cooperation and add new services into its operations. And it is working with partners in India, South Africa and Brazil to build roads and freight rail lines under the cooperative framework of the BRICS Business Council.

China has been keen to accelerate the connectivity of BRICS countries. The effort involves hardware, software and people-to-people exchanges to provide a strong foundation for these countries’ long-term development.

Hardware — or physical connectivity — includes maritime, land and air transport; energy infrastructure; telecommunications; and information and communication technology. Software, or institutional connectivity, comprises customs, supply chains, finance, regulatory coherence and structural reform.

People-to-people connectivity includes tourism, business mobility, student and researcher mobility, labor and professional mobility and cross-border education.

Jiang Zengwei, chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, said the top priority is to establish a flexible physical transportation network among BRICS countries to further boost economic growth.

Major Chinese airlines, including Hainan Airlines, Air China and China Southern Airlines, have all opened new routes between various Chinese cities and BRICS destinations such as St. Petersburg, Russia; Johannesburg, South Africa; and Mumbai, India, over the past five years.

Paulo Cesar Silva, president and chief executive officer of Brazil-based aircraft manufacturer Embraer SA, suggested that BRICS countries should establish an alliance for air transportation services and a high-level coordinating team to tackle common challenges such as infrastructure development, air traffic control and flight operation security.

“Future growth will be fueled by the fast growing markets in India, China and countries in Latin America,” Silva said.

The company predicted that China will need 1,070 regional jets with 70 to 130 seats over the next 20 years, making it the third-largest regional aviation market after the United States and Europe.