[Webinar]China in 2023: a “new” normal? Impact and Outlook

Event Details

Dear Members and Friends of the Swisscham,

Ever since 2020, each year was driven by short term changes and impacts creating extraordinary situations for China and those involved with the Middle Kingdom. 2023 could be the first year with more stable situation and therefore more predictable.

Will the abrupt exit from Zero-Covid allow the economy to continue to restart in record time? How will the underlying issues of the demographics and the technology containment put in place by the USA affect the evolution of the Chinese economy in the coming months and years? Will China indeed deepen its partnership with Russia, as announced by the Foreign Minister at the end of last year, or will the Ukraine war impact the partnership intentions? How much will the geopolitics of East Asia and supply chain risks impact foreign companies' business decisions in China?

This event is organized with the presence of the Chinese Ambassador to Switzerland, H. E. Wang Shihting and the Swiss Ambassador to China, H. E. Jürg Burri (online) shortly after the 14th National People's Congress, a crucial meeting held every five years to renew China's government, as well as announce important policies and objectives. This year's renewal of the Chinese Government is crucial in the wake of the 20th CCP Party Congress. What is the economic impact given the profiles and experience of the new leaders in the Chinese Government.

In light of the latest information from China, with this event we intent to draw the perspectives that Swiss businesses can expect from China through the analyses of several well-informed experts, economists and industrialists.

The latest results of the 2023 Swiss Business in China Survey will be ready to be published and additionally provide the view from the subsidiaries of Swiss companies in China, closest to the business realities.

This half-day conference - co-organized by theSwiss-Chinese Chamber of Commerce (SCCC), China Integrated, the China Europe International Business School (CEIBS), economiesuisse and the Swiss Center- will provide Swiss companies the most updated information and knowledge needed to inform their strategy and successfully develop their business in a China going towards another chapter of its development.

Agenda

March 29, 2023

Main Schedule

7:00 PM - 7:15 PM

Welcome address

Felix Sutter

Felix Sutter serves as the President of the Swiss-Chinese Chamber of Commerce (SCCC) since 2015. He is the co-founder of Succeed Consulting GmbH with the mission of connecting innovative Swiss and Chinese companies, entrepreneurs and investors. Felix Sutter has been a Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Switzerland for more than 19 years. He had also taken up overseas secondments as a Partner for PwC in Beijing and Singapore. He is engaged by PwC as a Business Consultant to support Asia Business Group activities.

7:15 PM - 7:30 PM

Welcome address: an overview of the latest policies of “Two Conferences” and their business impact (TBC)

Shitang Wang

Shihting Wang is the Ambassador of China to Switzerland since August 2020. He has served in the Department of African Affairs of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China, Chinese Embassy in Zimbabwe, Chinese Embassy in South Africa, Chinese Embassy in Malawi, Chinese Embassy in Ghana. He was appointed as Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in South Africa in 2006, Counselor of the Department of African Affairs of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China in 2008, Deputy Director General of the Department of African Affairs of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China in 2013, Ambassador to Malawi in 2015, Ambassador to Ghana in 2017.

7:30 PM - 7:45 PM

2023 Developments in China and related geopolitics - Impact on the Swiss economy

Rudolf Minsch

Rudolf Minsch is chief economist of economiesuisse, the top business organization in Switzerland. He is Deputy Chairman of the Executive Board and leads the department of economic policy and education. He is still associated with the University of St. Gallen where he is a lecturer at the Executive School. Furthermore, he is a visiting professor at the University of Applied Sciences in Chur, Switzerland.

7:45 PM - 8:15 PM

General environment: what is new? Informed by the results of the 2023 Swiss Business in China Survey

Nicolas Musy

Nicolas Musy holds a MSc. in Physics Engineering from the EPFL (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne). He has won his university’s first Special Alumni Award for demonstrating outstanding innovative and entrepreneurial spirit. He has been responsible to establish EPFL’s presence in China and his Alma Mater cooperation with Chinese top universities and the Chinese Academy of Science. In addition, he developed and ran the 2-week China Module of the EPFL EMBA in entrepreneurship. Exclusively involved in China trade, investment, research, strategy and project management, he has resided in the Shanghai area since 1988. He founded the Swiss Centers, co-founded the first Swiss industrial SME in China, Suzhou 2-ply Co. Ltd and is the Managing Director of LX Precision. As Founding Partner of China Integrated (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Nicolas has successfully supported a number of multinationals and over 100 mid-sized companies for their legal set-up, market entry, operations management, business acquisition, conflict resolution and restructuring.

8:15 PM - 8:45 PM

Q&A session

8:45 PM - 9:00 PM

Welcome address: impression of the “Two Conferences” and perceptions of Swiss companies in China

Jürg Burri

9:00 PM - 9:30 PM

Coffee break

9:30 PM - 9:50 PM

China’s Economy: Current Status and Future Outlook

Bin Xu

Dr. Bin Xu is Professor of Economics and Finance, Wu Jinglian Chair Professor in Economics at CEIBS. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Fudan University in 1986 and 1989, and his Ph.D. in economics from Columbia University in 1995. Before joining CEIBS, Dr. Xu was a tenured faculty member at Warrington College of Business, University of Florida. He also taught as a visiting professor at Darden School of Business, University of Virginia, and worked as a consultant for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. Dr. Xu’s current research focuses on the global and Chinese economy, multinational enterprises in China, and trade and finance Issues of emerging markets. He has published extensively in both international and Chinese journals, and was named to the “2021 List of Highly-Cited Chinese Researchers” released by Elsevier Publishing Group. Dr. Xu is the author of two books, International Trade and Applying Macroeconomics, and served as the founding editor-in-chief of CEIBS Frontier Views Book Series. Dr. Bin Xu has taught courses on macroeconomics, China and the global economy, and international finance at CEIBS, and was invited to give speeches on the global economy and the Chinese economy for executives of multinational companies and Chinese companies. Dr. Xu has won the CEIBS Teaching Excellence Award four times, and in 2019 won the CEIBS Medal for Teaching Excellence, the highest teaching award of CEIBS.

10:00 PM - 10:10 PM

Q&A session

10:10 PM - 10:40 PM

Concrete cases presented by companies on their China strategy

10:40 PM - 11:40 PM

Panel discussion and Q&A with the speakers

Felix Sutter

Stefan Schmid

Stefan Schmid is the Swiss lead tax partner with over 20 years of professional experience in setting up international structures for multinational groups. His work focuses on implementing tax aligned business models (value chain transformation), location planning for inbound clients (location comparison studies) and assisting multinational groups with structuring their investment and business, implement and maintenance of intellectual property structures, claiming tax incentives and other benefits offered by the economic development programs of Switzerland.

Markus Herrmann

Markus Herrmann, a Swiss-Chinese, is an experienced advisor to European corporate and public sector clients on the Chinese market and an expert in China’s economic, trade and S&T policies, political cooperation and government affairs strategies. Prior to CMG, he worked in various international companies including for BCG and Bayer in China. He is a Strategic Advisor Europe to Caixin Global and engaged in several board and advisory board roles including CEIBS Zurich, SCCC, UZH AOI, Swiss Forum on Foreign Policy and Stein am Rhein Symposium.

Gianfranco Siciliano

Dr. Gianfranco Siciliano is affiliated with the Department of Accounting & Finance at CEIBS as Assistant Professor since April 2019. He teaches courses in financial statement analysis, financial accounting, fraud accounting, investment trends in and from China. His primary research interest focuses on the properties and economic effects of accounting information and accounting standards, particularly in international settings. He is also interested in research topics related to corporate governance, family business and luxury. His case writing examines recent investment trends between China and Europe and luxury industry. His research and cases have been published in top accounting and business journals. He has also received multiple awards, such as the CEIBS 2021 Power of One Service Excellence Award, 2021 the EFMD Case Competition Award, and the Bocconi University 2017 Teaching Award. Prior to joining CEIBS, Prof. Siciliano worked at Bocconi University and he received his Ph.D. in Accounting and Master of Art in Economics at Duke University (USA). Before joining academia, he worked at the Internal Audit Department of Philips International NV in Eindhoven (The Netherlands) and at several accounting firms in Milan and Parma (Italy). He obtained a doctorate and a degree in Business Administration at the University of Parma (Italy). Prof. Gianfranco Siciliano is a native of Puglia, Italy.

Tomas Casas i Klett

Dr. Tomas Casas i Klett is a permanent faculty at the University of St.Gallen and the Director of the China Competence Center (CCC) at the Research Institute for International Management (FIM-HSG). He is also a visiting professor at universities in China, including the Tsinghua University’s School of Economics and Management (SEM) or Fudan University’s School of Management. His research on sustainable value creation has seen him advance the Elite Quality Index (EQx) which places the agency of elites at the center of structural reform initiatives. Other research areas of interest include China’s economy and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), team performance (e.g., see China team myths), free-trade agreements (FTAs), or narrative economics.

11:40 PM - 11:55 PM

Closing remarks

Ivo Germann

Mr. Ivo Germann heads the Foreign Economic Affairs Directorate at the State Secretariat of Economic Affairs (SECO) in Switzerland. Prior to his current position, he was Head of Macroeconomic Support in SECO’s Economic Development Cooperation Division. From 2019-2022, he was Head of the Economic, Trade and Finance Section and Second Deputy Chief of Mission at the Swiss Embassy in the United States of America in Washington, D.C. From 2013 to 2019, he was Head of Operations in SECO’s Economic Development Cooperation Division. From 2010 to 2012, he was Head of the Private Sector Development Section at SECO. In this capacity, he led the institutionalization process of the Swiss Investment Fund for Emerging Markets (SIFEM) – the Swiss Development Finance Institution – and served on its Board of Directors. From 2007 to 2010, Mr. Germann worked as Principal Economist in the Chief Economist Office of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in London, UK. From 2000 to 2007, he held various positions in SECO’s Macroeconomic Support Section. Mr. Germann holds a degree in economics from the University of Zurich.

Speakers

Felix Sutter

President, Swiss-Chinese Chamber of Commere (SCCC)

Shitang Wang

Ambassador of People’s Republic of China to Switzerland

Jürg Burri

Ambassador of Switzerland to People's Republic of China, Mongolia and DPRK

Rudolf Minsch

Chief economist and Deputy Chairman of the Executive Board of economiesuisse

Nicolas Musy

Founder of China Integrated and the Swiss Centers China, CEO Alexander Hughes China

Bin Xu

Professor of Economics and Finance; Wu Jinglian Chair Professor in Economics of CEIBS

Stefan Schmid

Partner, Leader China Business Group, PwC Switzerland

Markus Herrmann

Managing Director of China Marco Group (CMG)

Gianfranco Siciliano

Assistant Professor of Accounting, CEIBS

Tomas Casas i Klett

Director of the China Competence Center at the University of St.Gallen

Ivo Germann

Head of the Foreign Economic Affairs Directorate at SECO

Nicolas Musy holds a MSc. in Physics Engineering from the EPFL (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne). He has won his university’s first Special Alumni Award for demonstrating outstanding innovative and entrepreneurial spirit. He has been responsible to establish EPFL’s presence in China and his Alma Mater cooperation with Chinese top universities and the Chinese Academy of Science. In addition, he developed and ran the 2-week China Module of the EPFL EMBA in entrepreneurship.

Exclusively involved in China trade, investment, research, strategy and project management, he has resided in the Shanghai area since 1988. He founded the Swiss Centers, co-founded the first Swiss industrial SME in China, Suzhou 2-ply Co. Ltd and is the Managing Director of LX Precision. As Founding Partner of China Integrated (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Nicolas has successfully supported a number of multinationals and over 100 mid-sized companies for their legal set-up, market entry, operations management, business acquisition, conflict resolution and restructuring.

Dr. Bin Xu is Professor of Economics and Finance, Wu Jinglian Chair Professor in Economics at CEIBS. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Fudan University in 1986 and 1989, and his Ph.D. in economics from Columbia University in 1995. Before joining CEIBS, Dr. Xu was a tenured faculty member at Warrington College of Business, University of Florida. He also taught as a visiting professor at Darden School of Business, University of Virginia, and worked as a consultant for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

Dr. Xu’s current research focuses on the global and Chinese economy, multinational enterprises in China, and trade and finance Issues of emerging markets. He has published extensively in both international and Chinese journals, and was named to the “2021 List of Highly-Cited Chinese Researchers” released by Elsevier Publishing Group. Dr. Xu is the author of two books, International Trade and Applying Macroeconomics, and served as the founding editor-in-chief of CEIBS Frontier Views Book Series.

Dr. Bin Xu has taught courses on macroeconomics, China and the global economy, and international finance at CEIBS, and was invited to give speeches on the global economy and the Chinese economy for executives of multinational companies and Chinese companies. Dr. Xu has won the CEIBS Teaching Excellence Award four times, and in 2019 won the CEIBS Medal for Teaching Excellence, the highest teaching award of CEIBS.

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