European trade chief calls for more open Chinese market
The 18th China-EU summit kicks off in Beijing on Tuesday during a period of uncertainty over Brexit and pressure from European companies demanding more open access to China's market.
Leaders from both sides, including Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, are expected to discuss an investment agreement between the two sides in addition to the contentious issue of China's market-economy status.
In the run-up to the summit on Monday, European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström delivered a keynote speech at Peking University saying that China must give European companies the same kind of market access that Chinese firms enjoy in Europe before discussions on a bilateral free trade agreement can begin, the Daily Mail reported.
"A more market-oriented economy is essential," she said. "What we have not seen yet is much focus towards putting those ideas into practice."
"Since many Chinese companies cannot compete with their European counterparts in terms of funding, technology and management skills, under such conditions, to give European companies the same market access would only jeopardize the Chinese ones," said Liang Haiming, a Hong Kong-based economist and member of the academic committee of Pangoal, a Beijing-based public policy think tank. "It will only be equal if both sides are on the same level," he said.
Meanwhile, China is expected to announce its initial investment of about 2 billion euros ($2.21 billion) in a financing vehicle linked to the EU's European Fund for Strategic Investments, which is currently valued at 315 billion euros, officials familiar with the talks said, Reuters reported.
"The decision can establish a model of investment partnership between the largest two Eurasian markets. While Beijing will have no power to influence how its contribution will be spent, the benefit for China is clear, as EU underinvestment in infrastructure since the 'great recession' has created important opportunities with substantial returns," Vasilis Trigkas, an Onassis Scholar at Tsinghua University, told the Global Times.
"The ongoing Sino-European cooperation in investments through the Strategic Fund and the European Investment Bank-Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank partnership can be a stepping stone for further harmonization of regulations and investment norms between the EU and China and ultimately lead to the herculean yet vital Sino-EU Bilateral Investment Agreement, which could unlock crucial flows of capital between China and the EU," said Trigkas.
At the summit, Premier Li stated that China firmly supports the European integration process and would like to see a stable, flourishing and strong EU, said Xinhua.
Other foreign policy issues likely to be addressed at the summit are conflicts in Syria, Ukraine, Libya, Afghanistan and the Korean Peninsula, said the EU's official website.
