[POST EVENT] Seminar "Opportunities in the Hainan Free Trade Zone"

Dear Members and Friends,

In 2018, Beijing announced its goal to establish a Free Trade Port (FTP) in Hainan. Two years later, in June 2020, Chinese authorities published a master plan aimed to transform the 34,000 square kilometres of the island province located in Southern China into a globally competitive FTP.

It is in this context that the China-Italy Chamber of Commerce (CICC) organized together with the European project EU Sme Centre, of which CICC is the coordinator of the consortium of implementing partners, the seminar ‘Opportunities in the Hainan Free Trade Zone: Insights on the Logistic Sector’.

The meeting was held Friday, May 7th, 2021, from 17:30 to 19:00, both online & offline in Haikou (capital of Hainan), during the first edition of China International Consumer Products Expo – EXPO Hainan (7-10th May), a fair destined to become one of the most important events in Asia for the import of high-quality products.

Among the Italian brands present at the Hainan Expo there are: Pomellato, Sergio Rossi, Giuseppe Zanotti, Guidi, Tod's, Armani, Valentino, Etro, Allegri, Damiani, Polina Elvido, Ferrero, AgustaWestland (Leonardo), Alluflon e Nelo. 

Located at the heart of China’s ‘dual circulation’ strategy, Hainan Free Trade Port will undoubtedly bring unlimited business opportunities to European enterprises, which have a strong advantage in the trade of high-quality goods and services.

The purpose of the seminar was to help European companies in Europe understanding the huge opportunities provided by Hainan Free Trade Port, particularly in the field of logistics and transports.

The meeting was structured as follows:

• The event started with the opening remarks by Gong Qijun, Deputy Director General of Hainan Provincial Bureau of International Economic Development, Lucia Pasqualini, Consul General of Italy in Guangzhou, and Paolo Bazzoni, Chairman of China-Italy Chamber of Commerce.
• Then followed a discussion on the two topics at the centre of the seminar, that is ‘Overview of Hainan Free Trade Port & Opportunities for Foreign Companies’ and ‘Why Hainan? - Focus on Liberalization of Transportation’. To share their experiences there were Vincenzo Morano, Founder & Executive Director of Insider CHINA and member of Logistic Working Group (LWG) of CICC (which is made up of 12 companies); Xu Zhongliang, Senior Partner and Italy Managing Partner of Yingke law firm; and Qin Bo, Attorney at the same law firm.
• The event closed with a Q&A session. 

The seminar was moderated by Giulia Gallarati, Secretary General of China-Italy Chamber of Commerce and Board Member of EU Sme Centre.

We also report that this morning Secretary General Giulia Gallarati and Chairman Paolo Bazzoni attended the “Matching Meeting for International Brands and Hubei (Wuhan) Businesses”, also organized within the framework of the China International Consumer Products Expo.

In his speech, Chairman Bazzoni recalled that among the main factors that push companies to operate in the Chinese market there are undoubtedly the economic growth recorded by the People's Republic of China in 2020 (+ 2.3%), the high demand of products and services by consumers, access to a market that is for many sectors the largest in the world, the presence of a dynamic business environment and the incentives introduced at local level.

On that occasion, the Secretary General and the Chairman also had the pleasure of meeting Zhao Haishan, Vice Governor of the People’s Government of Hubei Province, and Jiang Wei, Standing Member of Wuhan Municipal Committee and Deputy Mayor of Wuhan Municipal People’s Government.

We also report that Chairman Bazzoni was interviewed by Hainan TV and Xinhua today. Further updates on both interviews will follow.

Kind Regards,

CICC Team