Qingdao enterprises make international marks

The Haier Group builds a trade zone in Lahore in Pakistan.[Photo: ce.cn]

The eastern Chinese city of Qingdao has a long history of conducting international trade with the countries in the Belt and Road region.

Today, Qingdao continues to expand its economic and trade cooperation with those countries involved in the Belt and Road initiative.

During the process, more and more local enterprises in Qingdao are leaving marks on international trade. Shen Ting has more.

In 2015, Qingdao Longhai Group Mold Platen Co., Ltd won the bid on a project of reconstructing roads around the Issyk-Kul Lake.

It was the first time for the business group to contract a project outside China,.

Today, the construction of a 104-kilometer-long road around the lake has been completed, greatly improving the traffic around the Issyk-Kul Lake.

Feng Xiaoguang is the General Manager of the Kyrgyzstan's branch of Qingdao Longhai Group Mold Platen Co.

"To date, this road project is their largest-ever project in Kyrgyzstan. However, under pressure from the tight schedule and heavy workload, our local workers from Qingdao had to work 16 hours a day. The road was completed in less than two months. The president of Kyrgyzstan said that the renovated road is the best one in Kyrgyzstan, which could be used as a model for other road projects. The country also expressed its hope that my company may participate more in local road construction projects.

A large number of Qingdao's local enterprises have successfully helped the construction of infrastructure facilities, mineral resources' exploration and even the operation of trade areas in the countries along the Belt and Road.

During this process, these enterprises have also explored new spaces for development.

Bi Weifeng is the General Manager of the European branch company of Tsingtao Brewery Company Limited.

"The Tsingtao Brewery Company Limited has already laid a solid foundation in Europe. In the future, my company would further enhance the core values of our brand to impress consumers and fulfill our aim of building Qingdao beer a global brand."

With the deepening of the Belt and Road initiatives, Qingdao has built closer ties with the countries along the Belt and Road.

Haier Group, one of the local business giants, has also benefited from these closer ties.

The corporation has launched factories as well as research and development centers, for the sake of integration of global resources to achieve their business expansion worldwide.

Timo Bol is Haier European R & D Center's General Manager.

"Haier's research and development center in Europe has taken advantage of its favorable geographical location, where we may obtain the first-hand information and better understand the needs of consumers. So we may build up our business in Europe into another famous brand of home appliances."

The Qingdao city authorities have also given active support for local enterprises to seek broader space for development through cooperation with countries in the Belt and Road region.

Up to now, a large number of Qingdao enterprises have entered overseas markets. Also, a total of 17 industrial parks with these enterprises are under construction.

The Luhaifeng Group in Qingdao has invested 4.6 billion yuan into building a comprehensive farming and fishing industrial park in Kedah, a state of Malaysia.

According to Liu Jisheng, general manager of the Malaysian branch company of Luhaifeng Development Co., Ltd., the new farming and fishing industrial park in Kedah, upon its completion, may have direct business links with the Dongjiakou Seafood Industrial Park in Qingdao.

"The Malaysian government hopes us to bring some Qingdao enterprises in the upcoming new industrial park. We have quite a number of processing plants in Qingdao, which we aim to move overseas."

Liu added the new farming and fishing industrial park in Kedah is expected to become the world's largest platform for fish production, as well as a refrigeration base, commercial terminal and the trade of aquatic products.

Meanwhile, the CRRC Sifang Co, Ltd has also signed with Myanmar to help construct bus plants and relevant equipment, with a contract worth about 300 million yuan.

The Aucma Group also launched joint ventures with local customers in Nigeria, with an annual capacity production of 200,000 freezers, refrigerators and air conditioning systems annually.

In addition, the Qingdao-based Sailun Jinyu Group has invested in building a tire factory in Vietnam in 2012. Now the factory has been transformed into the world's leading tire production base with high level automation, intelligence and information technology.

Liu Yanhua is the Chairman of the Sailun Jinyu Group's branch company in Vietnam.

"We launched the branch company out of consideration for an international demand, which is a direct cause. Also we need to take measures to avoid trade barriers, and we couldn't locate all the factories just within China. In order to better participate in international competitions, the launch of branch companies overseas can also help us accumulate a pool of international talents."

To date, Qingdao has launched a total of 72 key development projects in countries along the Silk Road with an investment totaling 20 billion US dollars.

These projects have not only expanded the format of Qingdao's business development but also established a strong brand image on the international arena for this Chinese city.

For CRI, I'm Shen Ting.