The EMA, in partnership with the Chinese Business Centre, was pleased to welcome Chinese Consul General, Mr Chen Shijie to meet with our Members at the EMA Business Hub in Auckland.
With business communities navigating extraordinary circumstances amid fluctuating tariffs from the US Government, it was a rare opportunity to hear directly from the Consul General and understand more about the implications for free trade between New Zealand and China.
According to EMA’s Head of Advocacy Alan McDonald, what stood out was the strength of the language in the formal address by the Consul General. “They made it very clear that they were unhappy with recent tariff announcements by the US, and the fact that they were willing to come and speak publicly in that way was insightful.”
“We were impressed that the Consul General and his team took questions from EMA Members in an open session, which is a sign of their intent to maintain good trade relations with their partners.”
The Consul General made it clear that they feel the US is letting down trusted trade partners with the unilateral push to increase tariffs.
The Chinese indicated that they want to remain trusted partners with the other economies that they deal with, and it was encouraging to hear how much the Chinese value the trade relationship with New Zealand.
Mr Shijie highlighted the China-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA) signed in Beijing by then PM Helen Clark and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in 2008. At the time, the historic agreement was the first comprehensive FTA that China had signed with any OECD nation.
In his speech, the Consul General indicated that the Chinese genuinely want to build on the bi-lateral relationship, highlighting in particular New Zealand’s primary and food sectors where Kiwi exporters are well entrenched in the Chinese market. The Chinese see more opportunities for NZ exporters, not fewer.
“China wants to remain a stable, trusted and valuable partner – that was the key message for our exporters and our manufacturers,” says Alan McDonald.
