A conference on exchanges in the investment and business environment for Japanese-invested companies is held in Guangzhou on Oct 22. 

A conference on exchanges in the investment and business environment for Japanese-invested companies was held at Hotel Canton in Guangzhou on Oct 22.

Attendees of the conference included Hideki Ishizuka, consul general of Japan in Guangzhou, Hu Hong, vice mayor of Guangzhou, more than 40 senior managers from 17 Japanese-invested companies in Guangzhou, as well as local government officials.

The conference has been held six times since 2013, establishing a high-efficiency and convenient communication platform between the local government and companies.

Hu said that the revival of Guangzhou's economy since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) couldn't be achieved without the support of local companies, including Japanese-invested companies.

Hu expresses his hope that the conference can further support the development of Japanese-invested companies in the city and make contributions to the establishment of a world-class business environment.

Ishizuka extended his gratitude for the support offered by the Guangzhou government in his speech and noted that he hopes Japanese-invested companies in Guangzhou can grasp the development opportunities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. He added that he hopes Japanese-invested companies can enhance communications and cooperation with Guangzhou in areas spanning scientific innovation, talents, education, and culture.

Kenji Shimizu, director general of the Guangzhou office of the Japan External Trade Organization, said that Guangzhou has provided a lot of support for Japanese-invested companies, as well as that the city has a complete and huge industrial cluster, which offers strong competitiveness for companies.

Shimizu added that the Greater Bay Area is a very large consumer market and that is very attractive to companies to conduct manufacturing in Guangzhou, which is so close to the market.

Japan is one of the most important partners in investment and trade, as well as the third largest source of the foreign capital actually used in Guangzhou.

At present, Japan has invested in 699 projects in Guangzhou in areas spanning automobiles, elevators, household appliances, and logistics supply chains, with a contractual foreign capital of $7.01 billion, as well as $6.68 billion of foreign capital actually used. The economic and trade cooperation between Japan and Guangzhou has now expanded to areas like smart manufacturing, new energy, finance, and logistics.