- Good Perspectives for Sino-Berlin Business Relations
BERLIN, Nov. 5 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- Berlin Mayor and Senator for Economics, Technology, and Women's Affairs Harald Wolf will be visiting Hong Kong, Shenzhen, and Beijing November 7-12, where he'll be meeting and holding talks with politicians and business representatives. Senator Wolf says of his trip, "I intend to entrench existing contacts, and inform Chinese companies about the opportunities for investment in Berlin. A new airport is currently being built in Berlin that is an hour's flight closer to Asia than any other European airport that can be reached directly by air."
Berlin is one of only two German cities in the list of the top 50 foreign investment locations for Chinese companies compiled by the Chinese Economics Ministry and the China International Institute of Multinational Corporations.
At present there are about 200 Chinese-run firms in Berlin, and another 20 or so are planning to settle there. Some 6,000 Chinese live in the German capital city. Berlin-based companies increased their trade with China by a factor of six from 1996 to 2006. Over the same period, imports from China rose more than fivefold.
In Hong Kong Senator Wolf is due to hold talks with municipal leaders and visit the science park. In Shenzhen he will be visiting HYT, a radio device manufacturer. He will also be attending the Shenzhen-Berlin Economic Cooperation Forum, where he will present the investment opportunities in Berlin to representatives from several hundred Chinese companies. In Beijing the senator will be visiting the Berlin Olympic Pavilion and find out more about the Sino-German co-production 'Laura's Star II' involving Berlin-based animation company Cartoon Film.
In all three cities he will be talking to airlines interested in operating direct flights to Berlin. The construction of the new Berlin-Brandenburg International Airport (BBI) will create the most modern airport in Europe. The BBI is due to begin operating in 2011, and is expected to process an initial 25 million passengers a year, though it will have the capacity to handle up to 40 million. Given its proximity to Asia vis-a-vis other European airports, the BBI will be ideal for new direct connections between the two continents.
The Berlin delegation's trip was organized by Berlin Partner GmbH, the company commissioned by the Berlin government to attract investors, advise local companies on foreign trade, and market the German capital city.
Further information about Berlin Partner (in German and Chinese): http://www.berlin-china.net
Further information about the investor conference (in English and Chinese): http://www.shenzhen-berlin.com
