With geopolitical winds, Chinese firms in UK see cause for concern

The Chinese business community in the United Kingdom is concerned over the impact of geopolitical tensions on the operating environment in the country, a report shows.

On Thursday, the China Chamber of Commerce in the UK published its 2022 report on the development of Chinese enterprises in the country. "The report is a way for us to be the bridge between UK and China, to represent our members, to be the voice of our members," said Fang Wenjian, the chamber's chairman.

"Our membership has reported a higher level of pessimism than in previous years in terms of the business environment in the UK, which they attribute, in part, to escalating geopolitical tensions and challenging China-UK relations."

The report was carried out in July and August, and 79 companies, ranging from big State-owned companies to small and medium-sized private enterprises, responded to the survey via a questionnaire.

It found 78 percent of companies view a "complex geopolitical landscape impacting China-UK relations" as a top challenge to their operations in Britain, up from 53 percent in 2020, when the chamber first started publishing the annual report.

Against the backdrop of increasing instability and sluggish economic growth across the global economy, the report said 66 percent of companies perceive the UK business environment as having worsened over the past two years. The number of companies saying they will make further investments in the UK has fallen for the third year in a row.

"If this trend continues, the UK could lose its competitiveness over other territories as attractive destinations for Chinese investment," said the report.

During the report's launch, Bao Ling, minister of the Chinese embassy in the UK, said: "For China-UK cooperation to move forward, principles such as mutual respect and mutual benefits need to be observed.

"It is hoped that the UK will provide and maintain a fair, just and nondiscriminatory environment for Chinese businesses in the UK as a sound and mutually beneficial business relationship is in the fundamental interests of the people of both countries."

Despite the challenges, the report said the appetite from both sides to drive collaboration remains, especially relating to opportunities arising from the UK government's key policies of Levelling-Up and Net Zero.

Nearly 80 percent of the surveyed companies with more than 100 employees have the majority of their workforce made up of locals, and 40 percent of the companies have branched out their operations from London to other regions in the UK; some 30 percent are planning further investments.

According to Grant Thornton, an accounting firm that tracks Chinese businesses in the UK, there are more than 800 Chinese companies in the UK. They generated more than 63 billion pounds ($77 billion) in revenue and employed around 61,000 people in 2021.

"Chinese companies have been not only contributing to GDP, creating jobs, but also adding to the diversity and inclusion of the UK as a whole," Fang said.