CICC Chairman and Suzhou Delegation Met Suzhou New District (SND)

Dear Members and Friends,

The China-Italy Chamber of Commerce（CICC）is glad to inform you that, on March 23rd, Mr. Paolo Bazzoni and CICC Suzhou delegation visited Suzhou New District (SND) to discuss deepening practical cooperation between the two sides.

Madam Yu Meihua, Vice Director of SND Administrative Committee, Mr. Henry Sun Xianrui, Director of SND Bureau of Commerce, Mr. Amin Lou, Ms. Susie Cao, Ms. Lynne Wei, and Ms. Amber Guo from the Investment Promotion Centre, SND Administrative Committee also joined the meeting.

Mr. Paolo Bazzoni, CICC Chairman, Mr. Riccardo Campanile, CICC Board Member Suzhou, Mr. Flavio Zaghini, Suzhou Chapter (SCH) Coordinator, and Sarah Tian, CICC Suzhou Office Coordinator attended the meeting.

Madam Yu introduced to CICC that SND is home to over 1,700 Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) companies, among which, around 400 with European or US origin and around 33 being Italian companies especially in high-end manufacturing and automobile components. Many of them have been operating in SND since its first presence in China such as CAREL Electronic (Suzhou) Co., Ltd, Cefla Finishing Equipment (Suzhou) Co., Ltd, EDT Diecasting Technology (Suzhou) Co., Ltd., Emmegi (Suzhou) Co., Ltd., Faist Emission Controls (Suzhou) Co., Ltd., Pelliconi (Suzhou) Closures Manufacturing Co. LTD., etc. SND is looking forward to further cooperate with Italian companies especially in the manufacturing sector, trading, service, and financial industries. Henry Sun highlighted that SND is paying special attention to industries such as renewable energy, medical devices, Artificial intelligence (AI), and so on.

Mr. Paolo Bazzoni highlighted that CICC, being a member of Assocamerestero, the Association of Italian Chambers of Commerce Abroad, a network of 78 Chambers in 54 countries, is well connected with not only Italian companies in China but also back in Italy as well as in other countries. The CICC Members (around 600 in 2020) represent the Italian business community such as public-invested and multinational corporations, small and medium-sized enterprises (both manufacturing and commercial), service companies, etc. When it comes to industries, such as renewable energy, Italy has the highest investment rate on GDP for environmental protection among EU 27 countries and the highest shares of renewable primary energy sources among the most industrialized countries. He is confident that Italian companies will have a fruitful cooperation with SND.

Both CICC and SND agreed to implement more practical cooperation, such as organizing government dialogue with Italian companies located in SND, and online business matchmaking to introduce SND to Italian investors, as well as companies in Italy to Chinese investors.

About SND

Suzhou National New & Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone, also known as Suzhou New District (SND), is located on the western border of the ancient town of Suzhou. To its west is the serene Taihu Lake, and to its south the green hills stretch for miles. It is a “land of treasure” combined with elegant landscapes and Wu culture in Yangtze River Delta, a garden city with “real hills and real waters”. In November 1992, SND was approved by the State Council as a “National Level New & Hi-tech Industrial Park”.

SND has become the important economic growth pole of Suzhou, the independent innovation demonstration zone, a new and hi-tech industrial base as well as an organic component of the modern Suzhou city. In 2020, SND's GDP achieved RMB 144.6 billion, the general public fiscal budget revenue reached RMB 17.5 billion. SND places strong emphasis on clustering of innovative elements. SND has attracted nearly 100 universities, research institutes, and other platforms, gathering more than 1,600 leading innovative talents. SND will further highlight the industry upgrading, developing strategic emerging industries, promoting the development of five characteristic industry clusters of new-generation IT, renewable energy, hi-end manufacturing, big data and massive health.

Kind Regards,

CICC Team