Supporting the move to high-quality growth

Qunyi Zheng, chairman of Herbalife Nutrition China

A1 In my eyes, one of the biggest achievements is the improvement of people's living standards. In 1949, China still faced serious difficulties, mainly poverty. Since then the Chinese government has spared no efforts to solve this problem, especially during the past 40 years, with 740 million people being lifted out of poverty. In 1998, we made the decision to build our first manufacturing facility outside the United States in Suzhou. Since then, the company has developed rapidly in China. We have invested in the entire domestic supply chain in China.

A2 China's economy enjoys multiple sources of growth potential and resilience. Its economy has become more consumption-oriented and less export-dependent. Consumption is expected to remain the largest contributor to China's economic growth in 2019. Income growth and consumption upgrade have driven up consumption in health-related industries. I believe this important trend will benefit multinational corporations including Herbalife Nutrition, which hopes to better serve the health needs of Chinese consumers by providing more high-quality products and services.

A3 The law is China's first national basic law for foreign investment based on the management system of pre-entry national treatment plus a negative list, which strengthens promotion and protection of foreign investment, and fully demonstrates China's commitment to further open up and create a better business environment for foreign investors. I believe the new law will bring huge benefits to the long-term development of foreign investment in China, especially in terms of new investment and corporate mergers and acquisitions.

A4 The government aims to accelerate the development of the service industry, and health-related sectors are a vital part of the service industry. The demand for health services has increased substantially in China. More and more Chinese people have started to focus on personal health and nutrition. This is obviously a good opportunity for companies in health-related industries, including Herbalife Nutrition.

A5 We are glad to see the Chinese government's initiatives to build a better business environment, including efforts to cut red tape and enhance work efficiency. Herbalife Nutrition, together with other foreign-funded corporations will benefit from this. In recent years, China has unveiled a string of policies to improve the business environment and encourage foreign investment. I believe the country will be increasingly attractive to investors and the World Bank has already raised China by 32 places in terms of business environment in 2018.