'Right time to invest in Chengdu'

Delegation to Singapore: City's many advantages

It is the right time to invest in Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan province that will soon host the 2013 Global Fortune Forum, city officials told Singaporean business representatives last month.

As part of its campaign to attract more overseas investment, the city government held a forum in Singapore in late April to brief local entrepreneurs on the latest development and opportunities in Chengdu.

The event attracted more than 100 participants from companies including Temasek Holdings, Sembcorp Development Ltd and the NTUC LearningHub.

Liu Jianing, head of the investment division at the Chengdu Investment Promotion Commission, told the audience that Chengdu is now home to operations by 238 Fortune 500 companies, adding that 31 of them arrived since Fortune magazine announced in March 2012 that the city would host the 2013 forum.

Singaporean investment has also been on the rise in the city, Liu said.

By the end of March, 299 companies from the island country had signed deals to invest $3.37 billion in Chengdu, with $3.15 billion having now in place.

They are mainly engaged in electronics, semiconductors, food processing, real estate and finance.

Cui Wei, CEO of Sino-Singapore (Chengdu) Innovation Park Development Co Ltd, said at the forum that when it comes to the Chinese market, multinationals must do the right thing at the right time.

He said that now is the time for them to enter western China and Chengdu is the "parlor" from where they can reach the vast market in the region.

Li Xiaoyang, a representative of the Chengdu government, said at the forum that multinationals should not miss three great opportunities in Chengdu.

In addition to its easy access to neighboring regions, the city has more policy support from the central government now that the Chinese government is promoting a new round of development in western China and adopted a series of its own favorable policies on land use and other frequent concerns of companies, Li said.

Tianfu New Area

He said Chengdu's Tianfu New Area also offers rich opportunities for companies.

The 1,578 sq km area is designed to serve as the home to high-tech industries, a site for advanced manufacturing, a modern service hub in western China and one of the innovation hubs in the country.

It will play an important role in opening China's inland regions to Europe and Asia, serving as a channel for exchanges and cooperation in trade, technologies, information and culture, said a city government official.

Construction is now underway on a large number of infrastructure projects in the new area including an electronics and information park and an international auto city.

The Sichuan provincial government has approved 10 packages of incentive policies to boost development, while the Chengdu government will also offer support in such areas as financial services and taxes, the official said.

The Tianfu New Area is expected to be a major window to further open up western China and to play the most powerful role in boosting local economic growth, said a statement on the website of the Sichuan provincial government.

Officials also encourage entrepreneurs to seize the opportunity offered by the Global Fortune Forum in Chengdu.

As Chengdu is the fourth Chinese city to host the influential event seen as a barometer of development in the global business community, the city is expected to see greater development, a local official said.

In addition to large multinationals, the city also called for investment from overseas small and medium-sized companies.

"Many have sought their fortune in Chengdu and a lot more are joining their ranks as they see their friends or upstream or downstream companies get established in the city," said Liu of the Chengdu Investment Promotion Commission.