The Diplomat
The Chinese ambassador to Spain, Yao Jing, considers that the renewable energy, digitalization, decarbonization and technological innovation sectors are those that offer the greatest opportunities for collaboration between companies from China and Spain.
Yao Jing participated last Thursday in the meeting of the Spain-China Business Advisory Council, organized by the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (CEOE), and which was attended by the State Secretary for Commerce, Xiana Méndez; the general director of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, Inmaculada Riera; and the president of International of the Spanish employers’ association, Marta Blanco.
The meeting was attended by more than a hundred companies from both countries, which analyzed opportunities in future sectors and strategic alliances between companies from Spain and China, both in their respective markets and in third countries, according to CEOE.
At the opening, Marta Blanco stressed that the meeting is the first that the ambassador has attended since his arrival in Spain and highlighted that there is a shared interest in reinforcing trust between the two countries and taking bilateral relations to new avenues of cooperation. She added that, through alliances between Spanish and Chinese companies, it is possible to provide a better response to current challenges.
The head of International at CEOE recalled that last year, the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, visited China in a particularly emblematic year, when celebrating the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. She also recalled that, a few days ago, the Chinese Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, visited Spain and met with Sánchez, and said that CEOE gives great importance to these institutional meetings, which she hopes will continue in 2024.
State Secretary Xiana Méndez pointed out that China is a priority in Spanish trade policy, and stressed that the growth of economic relations makes that country a key economic partner, the main one on the Asian continent, to the point that, In 2023, it was positioned as Spain’s second supplier in the world and the main customer in Asia.
For her part, Inmaculada Riera highlighted that China is a world leader in future sectors, including electromobility, energy, digitalization and industrial technology, and in that sense, it has a prominent role, not only as a competitor but , above all, as a long-term partner.
Secretary of State 2023, it was positioned as Spain’s second supplier in the world and the main customer in Asia.
Likewise, she highlighted that, currently, Spanish companies are decisively betting on China in their investments and exports and that, for this reason, they are being the main protagonists in the process of strengthening bilateral relations.
For his part, Ambassador Yao Jing stressed the importance of having, in times of uncertainty, a good strategic partner. In this sense, he mentioned some of the sectors in which Spanish-Chinese business collaboration is more present or there are more opportunities at the moment, such as renewable energy, digitalization, decarbonization or technological innovation, and how this business cooperation impacts positively in society.
He recalled that, currently, there are more than 54,000 foreign companies established in China and was confident that this number will continue to grow and that those already present will increase their investments.
He also highlighted the importance of high-level visits in both directions and their positive impact on business confidence, mentioning some of the most recent and advancing some others that are expected this year. The ambassador also encouraged those attending the event to participate in the main fairs held in China and invited them to greater dialogue and exchange of information, in order to facilitate commercial relations in those sectors of activity in which companies find more difficulties.
After the opening interventions, two round tables were held. One, about the opportunities that China and Spain offer in future sectors and another about the main strategic alliances existing between Spanish and Chinese companies, both in the two countries and in their collaboration in third markets.
Spain-China exchanges
According to CEOE, the solid cooperation between China and Spain is characterized by its great complementarity. Thus, the annual trade in goods between both countries has exceeded 52,000 million euros and China has become Spain’s largest trading partner outside the EU.
The Asian country was Spain’s fourth trading partner, the second supplier of goods (10.4% of the total) and twelfth client of exports (2% of the total). In recent years, with the exception of 2023, both exports and imports with China have not stopped growing.
There are around 600 Spanish companies established in China, most of them SMEs seeking to develop their exports in various sectors. The number of Spanish companies that import or export to China exceeds 15,000.
According to the latest available figures (from 2021), in terms of stock, Spanish investments increased to 4,830.6 million (+47.5%). The financial services, pharmaceutical manufacturing and motor vehicle manufacturing sectors accounted for most of the investments.
For its part, the stock of Chinese investments in Spain reached 10,290.57 million euros (-1.80% compared to the previous year), with the main receiving sectors being the supply of electricity, gas, steam and air. , support activities for extractive industries and civil engineering.
The employers’ association adds that there are great opportunities for cooperation in sectors related to the environment, such as renewable energy and waste treatment, as well as in agri-food, automotive, engineering, transportation, telecommunications, health, textiles, tourism and finance, among others.
