In addition to the 75th anniversary of the Diplomatic Relations between Finland and China, this year in Shanghai we have also celebrated the 30th anniversary of the re-establishment of the Consulate General of Finland. Shanghai's Finncham celebrated the same milestone already last year.

In Shanghai the Team Finland co-operation between Consulate General, Business Finland and Finncham is very close. Our main goal is to serve well Finnish businesses operating and seeking for markets in this region. Shanghai with its surrounding wealthy provinces is an important hub for China's foreign trade, economic activities and industrial production. Most of the Finnish companies present in China are operating in this region.

China is a big, dynamic and complex market, which makes it both important and challenging for our companies. Chinese economic growth has been slowing down, competition is hard, and from the point of view of foreign companies there are many challenges related to market access, uncertainty of business environment and unequal operating conditions.

From our perspective, the operating environment does not seem quite as dark as it is often described in Europe. China's logistics, infrastructure, efficiency and the availability of workforce and raw materials serve our companies well. For many Finnish companies business in China is still going relatively well, and companies evaluate that the coming years might be slightly better. For many companies operating in China is a prerequisite for maintaining their international and innovative competitiveness. For many Finnish companies this market is so important part of the value chain or global result that there are no other options than to stay in China.

There are also opportunities for new Finnish companies in the Shanghai region, especially in such sectors where our companies have strong technological capacities and to which this region is investing in right now. These focus areas also for the Team Finland work in our area are digitalization, energy, circular economy, low-carbon, health and food, and consumer products.

Chinese companies are now heading towards international markets. Global trade will change and get even more competitive. If new markets build their growth increasingly on Chinese suppliers, then Finnish companies need to be involved in these Chinese subcontractor and supplier chains. For this reason it is important to be in China.

China will continue to play an important role for Finnish companies and Finland's economic development. In order to get our trade with China to more balanced position, we need to evaluate all potential trade opportunities which China offers both for the companies already present or considering to enter to this market. Success in China requires diligent homework and even more efforts and assets than before from our companies.

Trade between Finland and China seen from Shanghai