EUROPEAN companies in China are confident of a better future after reporting improved business last year, but they still ask for a level playing field because nearly half of them felt they have been treated "unfairly" in the country, the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China said yesterday.

"As China looks to rebalance its economy, further market opening and the development of the private sector present a formidable opportunity," the chamber said in the European Business in China Position Paper 2011/2012 released yesterday.

EU trade officials proposed a three-year extension to the duties, less than the five years requested by European producers just days after World Trade Organization rulings raised the prospect of new legal wrangling with China over export practices and EU methods for taxing imports.

"The current expiry review has confirmed the complexity of the bicycle sector... Therefore it is appropriate to limit the current measure to three years," said the document.

European bicycle makers had asked the EU authorities to extend the anti-dumping duties of up to 48.5 percent until 2016, to counteract what the EU has said is illegal export pricing by Chinese producers.

China and the European Union (EU) will start negotiations on investment agreements as soon as possible, in a bid to enhance bilateral economic relations, top trade officials from both sides said Thursday.

During a joint news briefing in Beijing, Chinese Minister of Commerce Chen Deming and EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht said each welcomed investments from the other.

JOHN Ross is currently Visiting Professor at Antai College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University. He was consultant to Fortune Global 500 companies and from 2000 to 2008 London's director (currently equivalent to deputy mayor) for economic and business policy.

The end of Wen Jiabao's visit to Germany, the United Kingdom and Hungary is an appropriate time to make a balance sheet of China's current relations with the European Union. It shows big potentials and some risks.

CHINESE Premier Wen Jiabao offered Europe a "helping hand" with its debt crisis during a visit to Germany yesterday and said his country could buy the sovereign debt of some troubled eurozone nations if needed.

"China has expressed support for Europe at various times. In other words, when Europe is in difficulty we will extend a helping hand from afar," the Chinese premier told a joint news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Wen, Cameron hold talks covering trade, security and human rights

THE European Union has told Chinese airlines they can win an exemption from the EU's carbon market if they follow Europe's lead in cutting greenhouse gas emissions from aviation, according to a letter seen by Reuters yesterday.

From January 1 next year, the EU will require all airlines flying to Europe to be included in the Emissions Trading Scheme, a system that forces polluters to buy permits for each ton of carbon dioxide they emit above a certain cap.

But China's aviation authority opposes the measure, saying it will cost Chinese airlines 800 million yuan (US$123 million) in the first year and more than triple that by 2020.

Report signals that the trading bloc will continue to be the main market

China, EU each speak of barriers in securing foreign contracts

Analysts said on Wednesday that the huge differences in the size of China's government procurement seen in the Chinese and European data simply reflect different definitions, and Chinese bidders on foreign contracts should receive equal treatment.

British Trade and Investment Minister Lord Stephen Green said on Monday in Beijing that China is Britain's key partner for growth.

Green arrived in Beijing Monday to begin a five-day business tour, which will include visits to Beijing, Chongqing and Hong Kong.

"China has seen spectacular unbroken growth over the last thirty years and is a market that is very important to the UK's economic development,"  Green told a news briefing at the British embassy in Beijing.

Food & Beverage Excellence Center @ My China B2B - Cloud Edition launch "Taste of Europe",  the European Food & Beverage excellence selection for the China and Asia markets.

"Taste of Europe" is an innovative Logistics / Distribution and Promotion platform, a concrete support for European Food & Beverage producers in China and Asia.

Through the combination of new digital communication technologies, applied to traditional and international trading business, the European producers can now directly manage their presence on the Chinese market and follow, step by step, own distribution marketing and promotional activities about their products.

An original distribution platform that enable companies to be promoted through the catalog "Taste of Europe" on Department Stores and Ho.Re.Ca. on Chinese and Asian Channels. A concrete infrastructures and real extension to the existing internationalization business skills.

Using QIAO TAG smart tags, any product can be monitored not only in their logistics / distribution delivery, but allow to open a direct relationship with consumers in the different shops and department stores, using mobile and other communication appliances.

An interactive action between producer and consumer, first of all to ensure the quality of products and their traceability, an aspect very important for Chinese consumer, but at the same time, enable the activation of promotional and marketing campaigns, in "real time".

Other important issue is about payments and delivery: "Taste of Europe" guaranteed payments for seller and in the same time the quality for buyer.
Both elements that often scare the companies which intend to act on the Far East markets:

1) Seller company delivery own products only after My China B2B has obtained the payment from the buyer.

2) Meanwhile, My China B2B assured also the buyer: Seller will be paid by My China B2B only after the goods arrived and make quality control.

A practical way to try to raise the level of mutual trust between seller and buyer. Something that can speed up the business transactions cycle in the medium and long term.

How much does the European producer to join into "Taste of Europe" ? Nothing!

"Taste of Europe", share the success with partner companies through a "success fee" connected with sales.

Free of charge for all companies who will be selected: access to the platform and be able to add own products to the main catalog "Taste of Europe".

Here a video showing "Taste of USA" potentials for your company.

China on Thursday published a regulation on the registration administration of resident representative offices for foreign companies.

The regulation, to become effective in March 1, 2011, includes rules on the registration, establishment, information change, cancellation of registration and legal responsibilities of the representative offices of foreign companies.

According to the regulation, such representative offices are not allowed to conduct business in China, but they can perform market surveys, product or service display and promotion and liaise on behalf of their parent companies.

A foreign company needs to apply to China's State Administration for Industry and Commerce or its local branches in order to register a representative office or change an office's name or address.

The foreign company must be in existence for at least two years before applying to establish a representative office.

Any representative offices that are found operating without valid registration or engaging in any profitable business operations may be subject to administrative fines of between 50,000 yuan (7,507 U.S. dollars) and 500,000 yuan.

Additionally, foreign companies are required to appoint one chief representative for their offices and can appoint one to three other representatives according to business needs.

The offices are required to submit an annual report to the registration authorities between March 1 and June 30. The report should include information about the parent companies, representative offices' operations, and their balance sheets, which must be audited by auditing firms.

The regulation will also apply to the representative offices set up on the Chinese mainland by companies from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan.

Full text of the regulation is available on the Chinese government's website (www.gov.cn).

On Thursday, China also announced a regulation on the administration of fuel gas in urban areas. The regulation, which can also be viewed on the government website, will become effective in March next year.