Market entities explore opportunities in long run
China will remain a key and vibrant market for French companies, as the country’s commitment to sustainable growth and industrial upgrading creates opportunities for investment and collaboration, said business executives and government officials.
With domestic consumption driven by growing middle-income groups, they said China is poised to become one of the world’s largest and most dynamic markets for goods, services and technologies, particularly in sectors such as renewable energy, advanced manufacturing and digital technologies.
Many French multinational corporations have leveraged their global capabilities and worldwide manufacturing operations to bring the latest products and solutions to the Chinese market, said Cui Hongjian, director of the Beijing-based China Institute of International Studies’ European studies department.
These companies carry out innovative solutions and production in China, selling goods not only to the domestic market but around the world, he said.
Eager to seize more market share in China, Saint-Gobain, a French industrial group, plans to put the second phase of its Yangzhou manufacturing base into operation in 2024 to meet the soaring market demand for construction materials in China’s eastern region.
Ludovic Weber, Saint-Gobain’s CEO for the Asia-Pacific region, said equipment installation is to begin in the second half of this year.
After the completion and commissioning of this project, the French company will enhance its production capacity of high-quality paperfaced gypsum board and construction gypsum powder to meet the demand of light and sustainable construction in East China.
“The second phase of the Yangzhou plant is the fifth gypsum board production line built by Saint-Gobain in China,” said Weber. He added the company’s gypsum-based solutions can save up to 80 percent of greenhouse gas carbon dioxide, or CO2 emissions, compared with traditional construction methods.
Therefore, the project contributes to China’s dual carbon goals, he said. Upon completion of the project’s second phase, the executive said that Saint-Gobain’s Yangzhou manufacturing base is to serve the central and northern parts of Jiangsu province, and cities in Anhui province.
Eager to enhance its earning strength, the French company will put a new factory into operation in Yuzhou, Henan province, this year. It currently operates more than 50 plants across China.
Sabrina Soussan, SUEZ chairwoman and CEO of SUEZ Group, a French environmental solutions provider, said the group will invest more in China’s water and waste management market, thanks to the priority the Chinese government is giving to environmental initiatives.
“We expect revenue from the Chinese market to continue growing during the 2023-27 period, as China’s top policymakers have assured greater efforts to attract foreign capital, widen market access and promote further opening-up of modern service industries,” said Soussan.
“We see massive business potential in the country, a key market for the future of our group and our growth plans,” she said. “After 50 years in China, during which we aided the country’s transition to a low-carbon economy, we will continue working with local partners and develop a long-term strategic partnership in China,” she said.
The French company signed a cooperation agreement with its Chinese partners — Wanhua Chemical Group and China Railway Shanghai Engineering Bureau Group — for a seawater desalination project in Penglai district of Yantai, Shandong province, in early April.
Yu Yuantang, director-general of the department of European affairs at the Ministry of Commerce, said that the Chinese path to modernization will provide new opportunities, drivers and space for the growth of Chinese and French companies.
“French entrepreneurs are welcome to make long-term development strategies in China and Chinese entrepreneurs are encouraged to further expand cooperation with France, thus drawing on comparative strengths to explore global markets,” Yu said.
Echoing that sentiment, French Ambassador to China Bertrand Lortholary said that amid mounting uncertainty and instability in the international landscape, countries should not refuse to develop exchanges.
It is important to enhance strategic communication, economic cooperation and cultural and people-topeople exchanges between France and China.