A view of Shanghai Photo:VCG

Multiple foreign enterprises have said they will expand their businesses in Shanghai due to the thriving local market and sophisticated industrial chain, showing that the government's policy support for attracting foreign investment is having an effect.

US medical equipment enterprise Boston Scientific Corporation announced it will establish a manufacturing base in Shanghai, its first manufacturing base in China.

The base will be in Shanghai's Lin-Gang Special Area where Tesla's Gigafactory is also located. This will be a vital step for Boston Scientific Corporation in practicing its localization strategy in China, and will cover each phase of the industrial chain including trade, production, R&D, investment and service, said the company.

The announcement was made after Shanghai Party chief Chen Jining met with Michael Mahoney, chairman and CEO of the company, on Monday morning.

During the meeting, Chen stated that biomedicine is one of the three industries that Shanghai is vigorously developing. He also noted that Shanghai will further improve the business climate and provide policy support to boost the development of global enterprises in the city.

Mahoney said that Boston Scientific Corporation is willing to combine its advantages with Shanghai's large market and sophisticated industry chain. It will increase its investment and deploy more new products, technologies, and advanced manufacturing in the local market, and will help more innovative enterprises.

Since late September, Chen has met with multiple senior executives from large firms such as shipping company MSC, Hyatt Hotels Corporation and Roche. The business leaders all said they hold a positive attitude toward Shanghai and China's development in the future, and vowed to further deepen their business strategies in Shanghai and the entire Chinese market.

On September 22, Shanghai-based L'Oréal China announced an agreement to make a minority investment in Shinehigh Innovation, an innovation-led biotech company in China, to establish a long-term partnership with local partners.
The beauty company said the fast-paced and unique ecosystem of start-ups in China is an incredibly important enabler of their future strategy of innovation.

Data from the Shanghai Foreign Investment Development Board showed that from January to August this year, the number of new foreign-backed enterprises in Shanghai reached 3,877, up 44.2 percent year-on-year.

Foreign direct investment reached $15.90 billion, down by 2.5 percent year-on-year. Information transmission software and services, technology research and services, and rental and business services are the top three sectors that received the most foreign investment, the data showed.

The 6th China International Import Expo will be held from November 5 to 10, 2023, and over 1,400 foreign companies from countries under the Belt and Road Initiative have confirmed they will attend the expo, China Media Group reported on Sunday, showing Shanghai's strong attractiveness for foreign investment.

Global Times