Foreign firms enthusiastic about opening-up progress

Editor's Note: These interviews with CEOs of major foreign firms gauge their outlook for the Chinese economy, their operations in China and their business plans for 2024 and beyond, in the wake of the momentous resolution adopted at the third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China Central Committee in mid-July.

Q1

The third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China Central Committee in mid-July has rolled out the reform and opening-up roadmap for the Chinese economy in the coming years. What are your major takeaways from the plenum? What are the biggest opportunities you spot in China's new measures to deepen reform and further open up its economy? How do you plan to capitalize on these opportunities in your specific industry?

Hildebrandt: The plenum emphasized the importance of green development, which presents foreign and local companies with a multitude of opportunities, which range from the growth of emerging sectors like future transportation and renewable energy, to the revitalization of traditional sectors such as smart home appliances and energy-efficient buildings.

With an extensive portfolio of 45,000 products, BASF is well positioned to seize this opportunity and drive chemical innovation that will propel these industries toward a more sustainable future. To date, we have invested nearly 14 billion euros ($15.42 billion) in collaboration with our partners in China to establish a comprehensive local production and R&D network.

Additionally, as a front-runner in driving green transformation, BASF has developed a well-defined roadmap to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. This roadmap is in line with the green transformation of the chemical industry, as well as China's dual-carbon targets.

Zheng: At the third plenary session of the 20th CPC Central Committee held in mid-July, the concept of "developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions" emerged as an inherent requirement and a crucial focus for promoting high-quality development, offering clear direction and opportunities for the growth of Illumina in China.

Recognizing China's commitment to market-driven resource allocation, technological innovation, high-quality development, and the strengthening of intellectual property protections, Illumina is committed to further enhancing our localized manufacturing capabilities, and technological innovation, leading the synergistic growth of China's patent-intensive industries and propelling the high-quality development of the country's high-end scientific instrument industry chain, and facilitating China-based innovation integration into the global innovation system.