Room to Grow

By+Xia+Yuanyuan

Though the year 2016 saw a downturn in the automobile industry in general due to the sluggish global economy， Beijing Automobile Works （BAW） South Africa， a subsidiary of Chinese state-owned enterprise BAIC Group， proved an exception. Li Yongfu， General Manager of BAW， credits it to the companys“going out” strategy.

“In 2013， we set up a factory in South Africas Johannesburg. Since then， it has produced more than 3，000 vehicles with total revenue of 170 million yuan （$24.6 million），” Li said at the Investing in South Africa seminar， organized by the South African Embassy in Beijing and the China BRICS Business Council Secretariat in Beijing on December 20.

“The South African Government gave us strong support in many ways， including tax incentives and a convenient visa policy，” Li said.

BAW South Africa is one of the diverse facets of the new wave of China-Africa cooperation in industrialization. According to the Economic and Commercial Counselors Office of the Embassy of China in South Africa， by the end of 2015， Chinas direct investment in South Africa amounted to nearly $13 billion， with 75 percent of it going into sectors like finance， manufacturing and processing， trade-related services， agriculture， and transportation.

Since the establishment of China-South Africa diplomatic relations 18 years ago， economic cooperation between the two countries has been growing. China is now South Africas largest trading partner， and South Africa is Chinas largest trading partner in Africa.

“In Chinas economic development strategy， the government has always stressed ‘going out to encourage domestic enterprises to strengthen overseas investment. Therefore， there is huge potential in China-South Africa trade cooperation，” said Dolana Msimang， South African Ambassador to China.

South Africas attractions for foreign investors include infrastructure， communications technology， transport and logistics， and finance. In addition， the government offers preferential tariff and value-added tax policies in special economic zones and industrial parks.

“The South African Government will lay more emphasis on new energy， healthcare， tourism， hi-tech and the film industry in the coming year，” added Charles Manuel， Minister Counselor Economic at the South African Embassy in Beijing. “There is a huge investment market， and I hope that more Chinese enterprises invest in these areas.”

R.J. Thomas， Country Head of Brand South Africa， an agency established in 2002 to project a compelling brand image for South Africa， said Chinese investors should be aware that South Africa has more sectors to invest in than mining and resources.

“Our mobile companies are the biggest in the whole of Africa. If Chinese companies invest in South African companies or cooperate with them， they can get access to the whole of Africa，” Thomas said.

He added that retail is also an opportunity.“We have good retail， and China has good online shopping， such as Alibaba，” he said. “I think they can cooperate to dominate the whole countrys market based on Chinas e-commerce technology. Collaborating in new technology and innovation has great potential.”

Li Yafang， President of Beijing Review， publisher of the ChinAfrica magazine， which focuses on Sino-African engagements， said entrepreneurs will be envoys of friendship between the two countries as well as the main participants in China-South Africa economic and trade cooperation.

“As long as we work in concert， mindful of our shared interests， Chinese investment in South Africa will scale new heights，” Li said.