Multinational companies upbeat about Chinese market

Senior multinational executives have shown confidence in the investment climate in China amid concerns that the business environment is deteriorating.

During the two-day China Development Forum 2015 in Beijing, which concluded Monday, business leaders said the "new normal" may bring difficulties, but China's transition drive and reform efforts could create new opportunities.

COMING OR LEAVING?

Following Microsoft announcing that it would shut its China mobile phone production lines, the question of whether China was losing its glamour to foreign investors became a hotly discussed issue again, after Japanese watch maker Citizen suddenly closed its Guangzhou branch in February.

Earlier reports also showed that foreign-funded garment and shoe factories in southern coastal provinces were leaving China.

Despite this grim backdrop, the mood at the China Development Forum painted a more positive picture.

Japanese auto company Infiniti, which established its global headquarters in Hong Kong three years ago, is planning to invest more in the world's second largest economy and is ready to introduce more of its advanced technology to the market.

"China is definitely one of our most important markets," said Daniel Kirchert, managing director of Infiniti China, adding that he was quite optimistic about the prospects of the Chinese economy.

For insurance company AIA Group, China is among its top three markets globally and the insurer is working to make China the largest.

AIA CEO Mark Tucker said: "I think for us, the attractions [of China] get greater and we'll continue to invest."

The world's leading construction and mining equipment maker Caterpillar also expressed confidence in its China business at the forum.

"We are pretty happy with the state of our investment here," said Caterpillar Chairman Douglas Oberhelman, adding that his company will continue to concentrate on the Chinese market.

An annual global CEO survey by auditing firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) showed that 34 percent of over 1,300 companies surveyed said China was among their top-three overseas growth markets in 2015.

This indicates that China remains a magnet for foreign investment.