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Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s recent European tour injected confidence into the EU as it battles a debt crisis that began 18 months ago, Chinese analysts said.
“The sovereign debt crisis continues to escalate in the EU,” said Li Weiwei, Deputy Director of the Department for EU Studies of the China Institute of International Studies (CIIS). “Take Greece for instance. If the crisis goes on, the country may be forced to declare bankruptcy and withdraw from the euro zone. If a domino effect occurs, the EU will face even greater problems. Against this backdrop, Wen’s visit demonstrated China’s confidence about the future of the EU economy.”
On June 24-28, Wen paid a visit to Hungary, Britain and Germany. With Wen was a delegation of senior officials, including Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission Zhang Ping, Minister of Commerce Chen Deming and Governor of the People’s Bank of China Zhou Xiaochuan.
Chinese support
“China signed a series of procurement contracts with the three countries during Wen’s visit and will purchase Hungarian government bonds. These are concrete moves showing China’s support to the EU,”Li said.
China was ready to buy Hungarian government bonds and provide a 1-billion-euro($1.4 billion) loan to the country, said Wen in Budapest, capital of Hungary, on June 25.
Following that, trade deals worth$4.3 billion, including a $2.46-billion agreement on building a clean coal plant between the China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group and Britain’s Seamwell International Ltd., were signed during Wen’s visit to Britain.
European bonds are not the best choice as an investment product, said Sun Lijian, Vice Dean of the School of Economics at Fudan University in Shanghai.
The continuous escalation of the EU sovereign debt crisis proved it would not be easy for debt-ridden EU countries to escape the impact of the global financial crisis and achieve an economic recovery in a short time, Sun told International Finance News.
Central and Eastern European countries, with Hungary as a representative, had long suffered from a weak economic foundation and an overdependence on developed West European countries. In light of this, the Chinese Government’s decision to purchase more European bonds does not intend to reap profitable returns, but to provide financial support to these countries, Sun said.
Wen had a positive attitude toward purchasing European government bonds because China aims to promote the diversification of its reserve assets, said Mei Xinyu, an associate research fellow with the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation.
In order to diversify its huge reserve assets, China has to adopt a long-term strategy, Mei said. Purchasing European bonds now not only is cost-effective, but also can help gain larger market access for Chinese direct investment in Europe.
China’s purchase of euro bonds contributed to the stability of the euro and the recovery of the European economy, Mei said. But greater efforts are still needed to achieve“win-win results.”
For instance, China needs to increase its direct investment in Europe. Europe needs to expand market access for Chinese goods and investment and push forward its own labor market reform.
“A rigid labor market protection system will only inhibit investors’ willingness to invest, and reduce the growth potential of Europe’s employment opportunities,” Mei said.
Cultural exchange
“Cultural exchange was another highlight of Premier Wen’s European trip,” said CIIS’ Li.
On June 24, shortly after his arrival in Budapest, the Chinese premier attended a cultural exchange activity held at the Eotvos Lorand University. The university is the larg-
est and oldest institution of higher learning in Hungary and serves as a key institute for Chinese language learning.
At the university, Wen watched a local folk dance as well as Chinese folk song and martial art performances by Hungarian students. He also presented Chinese books to the students.
Hungarian students expressed their willingness to expand exchanges with Chinese youth to promote understanding and friendship.
Wen’s visit is the first visit to Hungary by a Chinese premier in 24 years. Hungary, from January to June holding the rotating EU presidency, is one of China’s most important trade partners in Central and Eastern Europe. The two countries’ trade reached a record high of $8.72 billion in 2010, up 28.1 percent compared to the previous year.
Later on June 26 in Britain, Wen visited William Shakespeare’s birthplace in Stratford-upon-Avon.
“China is an ancient civilization, and Europe is a continent with a long history and profound cultures,” Li said. “Cultural exchange between these two civilizations is of great significance.”
Cultural exchange could expand the channels for the two sides to strengthen mutual understanding and lead to more consensuses, Li said.
Extensive consultation
During Wen’s visit to Germany, the two countries launched an inter-governmental consultation mechanism, a dialogue mechanism aimed at enhancing cooperation between the two countries.
Along with the consultation, the two sides signed nearly 20 cooperative documents, with a contract value of more than $15 billion.
“This consultation is the highest in level, the largest in scale and the most wideranging in the history of Sino-German relations,” said Ding Feiya, an associate research fellow with the CIIS’ Department for EU Studies.
Ding said, though cooperation between China and Germany has blossomed, there are still many problems in Sino-German relations. For instance, Germany plays up the two countries’ ideological differences from time to time. An important reason for this is the lack of political mutual trust, and the main purpose of this new mechanism is to strengthen that trust, Ding said.
Cooperation between China and Germany has expanded from economy and trade to finance, insurance and new energy. In 2010, China replaced the United States as Germany’s biggest trade partner outside the EU.
In 2011, this momentum continues. From January to May, their bilateral trade reached about $66.3 billion, up 24 percent compared to the same period last year.
During the Sino-German inter-governmental consultation, the two sides set the goal of raising bilateral trade to $280 billion by 2015. They also decided to forge a strategic partnership on electric vehicle development and strengthen cooperation in new energy, energy conservation, environmental protection and energy efficiency.
Meanwhile, China decided to set up a 2-billion-euro ($2.8 billion) special loan to support cooperation between the two countries’ small and medium-sized enterprises.
“The sovereign debt crisis continues to escalate in the EU,” said Li Weiwei, Deputy Director of the Department for EU Studies of the China Institute of International Studies (CIIS). “Take Greece for instance. If the crisis goes on, the country may be forced to declare bankruptcy and withdraw from the euro zone. If a domino effect occurs, the EU will face even greater problems. Against this backdrop, Wen’s visit demonstrated China’s confidence about the future of the EU economy.”
On June 24-28, Wen paid a visit to Hungary, Britain and Germany. With Wen was a delegation of senior officials, including Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission Zhang Ping, Minister of Commerce Chen Deming and Governor of the People’s Bank of China Zhou Xiaochuan.
Chinese support
“China signed a series of procurement contracts with the three countries during Wen’s visit and will purchase Hungarian government bonds. These are concrete moves showing China’s support to the EU,”Li said.
China was ready to buy Hungarian government bonds and provide a 1-billion-euro($1.4 billion) loan to the country, said Wen in Budapest, capital of Hungary, on June 25.
Following that, trade deals worth$4.3 billion, including a $2.46-billion agreement on building a clean coal plant between the China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group and Britain’s Seamwell International Ltd., were signed during Wen’s visit to Britain.
European bonds are not the best choice as an investment product, said Sun Lijian, Vice Dean of the School of Economics at Fudan University in Shanghai.
The continuous escalation of the EU sovereign debt crisis proved it would not be easy for debt-ridden EU countries to escape the impact of the global financial crisis and achieve an economic recovery in a short time, Sun told International Finance News.
Central and Eastern European countries, with Hungary as a representative, had long suffered from a weak economic foundation and an overdependence on developed West European countries. In light of this, the Chinese Government’s decision to purchase more European bonds does not intend to reap profitable returns, but to provide financial support to these countries, Sun said.
Wen had a positive attitude toward purchasing European government bonds because China aims to promote the diversification of its reserve assets, said Mei Xinyu, an associate research fellow with the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation.
In order to diversify its huge reserve assets, China has to adopt a long-term strategy, Mei said. Purchasing European bonds now not only is cost-effective, but also can help gain larger market access for Chinese direct investment in Europe.
China’s purchase of euro bonds contributed to the stability of the euro and the recovery of the European economy, Mei said. But greater efforts are still needed to achieve“win-win results.”
For instance, China needs to increase its direct investment in Europe. Europe needs to expand market access for Chinese goods and investment and push forward its own labor market reform.
“A rigid labor market protection system will only inhibit investors’ willingness to invest, and reduce the growth potential of Europe’s employment opportunities,” Mei said.
Cultural exchange
“Cultural exchange was another highlight of Premier Wen’s European trip,” said CIIS’ Li.
On June 24, shortly after his arrival in Budapest, the Chinese premier attended a cultural exchange activity held at the Eotvos Lorand University. The university is the larg-
est and oldest institution of higher learning in Hungary and serves as a key institute for Chinese language learning.
At the university, Wen watched a local folk dance as well as Chinese folk song and martial art performances by Hungarian students. He also presented Chinese books to the students.
Hungarian students expressed their willingness to expand exchanges with Chinese youth to promote understanding and friendship.
Wen’s visit is the first visit to Hungary by a Chinese premier in 24 years. Hungary, from January to June holding the rotating EU presidency, is one of China’s most important trade partners in Central and Eastern Europe. The two countries’ trade reached a record high of $8.72 billion in 2010, up 28.1 percent compared to the previous year.
Later on June 26 in Britain, Wen visited William Shakespeare’s birthplace in Stratford-upon-Avon.
“China is an ancient civilization, and Europe is a continent with a long history and profound cultures,” Li said. “Cultural exchange between these two civilizations is of great significance.”
Cultural exchange could expand the channels for the two sides to strengthen mutual understanding and lead to more consensuses, Li said.
Extensive consultation
During Wen’s visit to Germany, the two countries launched an inter-governmental consultation mechanism, a dialogue mechanism aimed at enhancing cooperation between the two countries.
Along with the consultation, the two sides signed nearly 20 cooperative documents, with a contract value of more than $15 billion.
“This consultation is the highest in level, the largest in scale and the most wideranging in the history of Sino-German relations,” said Ding Feiya, an associate research fellow with the CIIS’ Department for EU Studies.
Ding said, though cooperation between China and Germany has blossomed, there are still many problems in Sino-German relations. For instance, Germany plays up the two countries’ ideological differences from time to time. An important reason for this is the lack of political mutual trust, and the main purpose of this new mechanism is to strengthen that trust, Ding said.
Cooperation between China and Germany has expanded from economy and trade to finance, insurance and new energy. In 2010, China replaced the United States as Germany’s biggest trade partner outside the EU.
In 2011, this momentum continues. From January to May, their bilateral trade reached about $66.3 billion, up 24 percent compared to the same period last year.
During the Sino-German inter-governmental consultation, the two sides set the goal of raising bilateral trade to $280 billion by 2015. They also decided to forge a strategic partnership on electric vehicle development and strengthen cooperation in new energy, energy conservation, environmental protection and energy efficiency.
Meanwhile, China decided to set up a 2-billion-euro ($2.8 billion) special loan to support cooperation between the two countries’ small and medium-sized enterprises.