— Nearly 80 percent of EU businesses confident about China's economic growth

"Seventy-eight percent of surveyed European Union enterprises say they are optimistic about the growth momentum of their industries and sectors in coming years, believing China has recovered from the financial crisis. This proportion has jumped by 13 percent over 2009," said Jacques de Boisseson, President of the China-EU Chamber of Commerce on June 29, 2010 at a press conference for the release of the European Chamber Business Confidence Survey 2010. "Ninety-six percent of the surveyed enterprises say since the outbreak of the financial crisis, China has continued to be an important or is becoming a more important market in their global strategy."

The China-EU Chamber of Commerce released its annual European Chamber Business Confidence Survey 2010 on June 29, 2010. It was jointly published by the China-EU Chamber of Commerce and Roland Berger Strategy Consultants. More than 500 EU companies operating in China participated in the survey taken during March and April, which sets new benchmarks in terms of the extensiveness and comprehensiveness of its statistics.

The survey shows that European enterprises in China are still confident about the strong momentum of China's economic growth, de Boisseson said, and 30 percent of the Chamber's members said that China is now their first investment target. A further 34 percent of members said China is among their top three investment destinations. This is indeed a great achievement."

As well, 18 percent of the surveyed enterprises said they are planning to expand existing or build new research and development centers, slightly higher than 2009 statistics.

De Boisseson said setting up a research and development center was a very important commercial decision, so the statistics showed the attractiveness of the Chinese market and EU enterprises' confidence in the market.

Although the member enterprises of European Union Chamber of Commerce still conducted business strategy based on investment and expansion of market shares, supporting China's economic growth, de Boisseson said, these enterprises were not doing so unconditionally. A more transparent and predictable business environment will further encourage European enterprises' investment in China.

Roland Berger Strategy Consultants Asia President Charles-Edouard Bouée said the business confidence survey clearly showed that European companies are filled with confidence in China's economic prospects and the market was also presenting a lot of potential opportunity. In the long run, however, profitability determined a company's fate of success or failure. At present, only 34 percent of the surveyed enterprises held an optimistic attitude about the profitability of the industries in which they were involved.

Domestic Chinese enterprises are becoming more competitive, Bouée said. This was one of the major reasons for the declining profitability prediction of the Chamber's member enterprises. He said that 58 percent of the surveyed companies saw Chinese companies' rising competitiveness as a future business risk. European companies operating in China needed to make continuous efforts to upgrade strength and try to diversify products and services in the complicated market.

De Boisseson said the EU Chamber of Commerce in China would present the survey to the Chinese Government and supervision departments, the European Commission, the governments of EU member states and also to many commercial institutions in China and Europe.