European Cos Unhappy With China Business Climate

Ahead of a crucial Europe-China summit, a new survey shows European companies may be increasingly unhappy with China's business climate, at a time when they also are reporting less profitability than their American competitors.

European companies told the European Union Chamber of Commerce in its annual business confidence survey that opaque and inconsistent government regulations in China have hurt them. The unhappiness also comes at a time when the stronger euro has eaten into their profits, with more businesses saying they aren't making money.

Joerg Wuttke, the chamber's president, told reporters at a briefing Thursday that while European companies are still upbeat about China, they also are concerned about a host of problems, including intellectual property abuses and arbitrary law-making.

'European businesses do well, but they could do better. People are less optimistic than last year,' he said.

Their grievances are likely to be heard at next week's EU-China summit in Beijing, where trade will top the agenda. The EU is China's largest trading partner but it has been increasingly upset at their growing trade deficit, which in the first eight months of the year grew to almost $150 billion, up from $117 billion in the same period last year.

The more difficult operating environment for European firms may also be raised at the summit, given the timing of this year's survey results.

Europeans companies surveyed point to the lack of government transparency as their biggest obstacle in doing business in China. They say it isn't always clear why some rules are implemented and often quite abruptly too. In the latest instance, one the survey didn't mention, the government told local banks to stop issuing new loans, an unexpected administrative edict.

Intellectual property issues also loom large. Half of the companies surveyed don't intend to set up research and development centers in China for fear of intellectual property rights abuse, a situation they say hasn't improved despite many years of government exhortation. 'There has been a lot of talk [on IPR protection] but not much walk,' Mr. Wuttke said.

This is the chamber's fourth annual survey. Unlike last year's survey, this one drilled deeper into some questions, said Charles-Edouard Bouee, managing director of Roland Berger Strategy Consultants. His company helped poll over 200 European companies operating in China. The new findings may better reflect European business sentiment.

Fewer European companies surveyed - 61% - say they are profitable this year, in part due to the stronger euro that could be making European goods more expensive and operating costs higher, Mr. Wuttke said. Last year, 76% of European companies surveyed by the chamber said they were making money in China.

That situation contrasts somewhat with what American companies have reported. Some 80% of U.S. companies were profitable in 2006, according to the 2007 survey of U.S.-China Business Council member companies. By Jason Leow, Wall Street Journal Asia,(8610) 6588 5848

在中欧高层峰会即将召开之际，一项新进行的调查显示欧洲公司对中国商业环境的不满可能在增加，与此同时他们在华业务的盈利水平也被美国同行甩在了身后。

在中国欧盟商会(European Union Chamber of Commerce in China)的年度商业信心调查中，欧洲公司反映中国政策法规的不透明与缺乏连贯性对他们造成了损害。此外，欧洲公司的利润因为欧元走强而被侵蚀也让他们感到不快，有更多的公司反映他们的在华业务无法赢利。

中国欧盟商会主席伍德克(Joerg Wuttke)在周四召开的记者会上表示，虽然欧洲企业仍然看好中国，但也受到一大堆问题的困扰，这其中包括侵犯知识产权和法律法规的制定过于武断等问题。

伍德克称，欧洲企业的表现虽然还不错，但他们应该能做得更好。大家对中国也不像去年那样乐观。

下周中国与欧盟将举行高层峰会，贸易问题在议事日程中是重头戏，届时此项调查很可能会引起与会各方的注意。欧盟(European Union)是中国最大的贸易伙伴，但对华贸易逆差激增使得欧盟的不满情绪日渐增加。今年前八个月欧盟对华贸易逆差接近1,500亿美元，较上年同期的1,170亿美元大幅增加。

考虑到此项调查结果的公布时间，欧洲企业在华经营环境恶化可能会成为中欧高层峰会讨论的话题。

据欧洲企业反映，政府缺乏透明度是他们在华开展业务的最大障碍。他们表示，中国政府并不总是能对其政策法规作出清楚的解释，而且有些规定的出台往往过于突兀。以调查报告中并未提到的一件事为例，中国政府最近要求国内银行停止发放新贷款，这一行政命令大大出乎人们的意料。

知识产权也是一个突出的问题。由于担心知识产权遭侵犯，受访企业中有半数表示无意在中国设立研发中心。虽然多年来中国政府一直将保护知识产权挂在嘴边，但情况并未好转。伍德克指出，保护知识产权多属于纸上谈兵，真刀真枪的行动很少。

罗兰贝格国际管理咨询有限公司(Roland Berger Strategy Consultants)中国区董事总经理查尔斯•爱德华•布埃(Charles-Edouard Bouee)表示，中国欧盟商会今年是第四次组织该调查，但与去年不同的是，今年的调查在某些问题上挖掘的程度更深。该公司协助中国欧盟商会针对200余家在华经营的欧洲企业进行了此次调查。新的调查点可能会更好地反映出欧洲企业的心声。

调查显示，只有61%的欧洲企业表示今年在华能够赢利，这个比例要低于上年。原因主要是欧元走强导致欧洲的商品价格比过去更贵，经营成本也更高。伍德克称，去年有76%的受访欧洲企业表示在华实现盈利。

此项调查结果与美国企业报告的情况形成了鲜明对比。据美中贸易全国委员会(U.S.-China Business Council)对会员企业进行的2007年度调查显示，2006年有80%的美国企业在华实现盈利。

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