Suzhou improves online efforts to attract foreign investment

2021-02-09 14:15:00

Suzhou has stepped up online efforts, including video conferencing, to deepen exchanges with foreign companies.

On the afternoon of February 8, the city’s leaders including Xu Kunlin, Wu Qingwen, Yu Xingnan and Yang Zhiping held a virtual meeting with senior executives of top multinational companies, such as L'Oréal and Santen Pharmaceutical.

A top destination of foreign investment in China, Suzhou has made great strides in establishing an open economy. The city added 1,256 new foreign investment projects in 2020, up 26.4% year-on-year, and the paid-in foreign investment totaled $5.54 billion, up 20% year-on-year, a record high in recent years.

At present, Suzhou has 17,000 operating foreign-invested enterprises, with investment from 156 international companies on the Fortune 500 list. Suzhou is also home to 151 regional headquarters and functional agencies of multinational companies operating in Jiangsu Province, accounting for 51.2% of the province's total.

The senior executives in the meeting showed great confidence of Suzhou’s development and pledged to expand cooperation.

In line with the strategy of further opening up and pursuing a high-quality development, Suzhou will focus on fields of high-end manufacturing, pioneering industries and modern service industries. The city will promote investment via online and offline efforts, become more goal-orientated, and try to attract more foreign investment that fits China’s new development pattern “dual circulation.”