The European Chamber Business Confidence Survey 2008, which was published by the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China, reports that most of the 250 EUCCC member companies in China are optimistic about the Chinese market and its future though they are facing more and more challenges.
The survey results show that although its economy is slowing down China still remains an attractive destination to investors; and this is confirmed the increasing number of European companies in the country, especially small and medium sized ones. In the survey, more companies reported increased profits than last year and over two-thirds of the companies' revenues in China accounted for less than 10% of their global total. This means that there is great potential for them to develop in China.
Joerg Wuttke, president of the European Chamber, commented that this year's survey confirms once again that Chinese market is still the most important emerging market for European businesses. He said that Chinese market may continue to grow significantly despite the slowdown of the global economy.
Wuttke added that European companies operating in China focus on the Chinese market itself instead of export. However, he also stated that European companies are being limited in investing in China due to a lack of transparent regulations, increasing economic nationalism, ongoing challenges in the field of intellectual property protection, and unfair treatment in environmental regulations implementation.
