Doing Business in China For Dummies®

Knowing Why You Want to Connect with the Chinese Government

The Chinese government’s formal policy is to welcome new foreign investment with open arms. Under the surface, the reality is sometimes different. Government officials are under a lot of pressure to give Chinese companies more attention.

Your Chinese competitors are trying to influence behaviors from government officials. They’re attempting to strengthen their position and/or weaken yours. Therefore, you really need to develop and manage key influencers within the Chinese government. In this section, we explain what the government can do for you and point out some resources available to you.

Government relations can be more important in certain industries, including highly regulated ones, those using newer technologies, or those offering nontraditional selling mechanisms. For example, financial services, Internet companies, and telecommunications companies come under much closer government scrutiny. If you’re in these industries, you need to spend a lot more time staying on top of your government relations.

Getting official assistance

The Chinese are trying pretty hard to make investing in China easier for foreigners. Here’s how:

✓	China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) has set up a division called the Investment Promotion Agency to cater to foreign investors.
✓	Provincial governments have special services to assist foreign ...