US firms looking to expand in southern China

Harley Seyedin, president of AmCham South China who has been working in China for 25 years, said he believes in sound Sino-US economic relations for the interdependence of the two economies.

"Are US-China relations going to be good? Absolutely. They have to be, because the two countries depend on each other in many ways. They depend on each other politically, economically and culturally," he said.

Companies from the US are looking to increase their investments in South China's modern service, energy and high-end manufacturing sectors as the country transitions to a more moderate phase of growth, according to an AmCham South China survey released earlier this year.

AmCham South China represents more than 2,300 US and international members doing business in South China region.

From his experience, Seyedin said bilateral economic ties have never been "easy sailing because there is always different interests involved. It has been fruitful and rewarding for all of the people involved in two-way business between the US and China".

"China's contribution to the US has been in the form of making goods available to US consumers at reasonable prices in a competitive fashion, which has helped raise the standard of living in the US."

With the opening-up of the Chinese market, over 77 percent of the member companies in the survey say they are supplying goods or services to the Chinese market, compared with the less than 23 percent in the survey 14 years ago.

"Our companies have adjusted to move up the value chain to benefit from the changing market of China," Seyedin said.

With continued reform and opening-up, the growth of the Chinese consumer market should accelerate, he said.

Contact the writers at liwenfang@chinadaily.com.cn