Interview: Companies in China, Spain should join forces, says economist

BARCELONA, Oct. 15 (Xinhua) -- Chinese and Spanish companies should join forces to do business in both countries, with today's technology and advanced logistics providing opportunities even for small firms, economist Ramon Calduch said to Xinhua in an interview on Tuesday.

Citing plans announced by Chinese companies, including Envision and Chery, to make substantial investments in Spain, Calduch said "Spain is a good country for the Chinese to invest in."

China's Envision Group announced plans to invest 1 billion dollars in building a new electrolyzer plant in Spain during Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's visit to China in September. Meanwhile, Chery signed a deal with Spanish company Ebro-EV Motors in April to begin developing electric vehicles in Barcelona.

"Spain is considered a friendly country in China, and good long-term relationships and win-win situations are important when doing business," said Calduch, who is also vice president of the Catedra China Foundation.

"It doesn't always have to be about the Telefonicas or the Huaweis, as most firms in Spain are SMEs, providing opportunities for smaller Chinese companies," he added.

Telefonica is a multinational telecommunications company headquartered in the Spanish capital of Madrid and Huawei is a multinational conglomerate technology corporation headquartered in Shenzhen, Guangdong province of China.

"Knowing how to use our advantages could be crucial for doing win-win business with China," he said. For example, Spain's car industry, the second-largest in Europe after Germany, boasts "a technologically powerful industrial set-up and specialized workers," he added.

Chery may not be the only Chinese automaker producing cars in Spain for long, as SAIC Motor is looking to set up an MG electric car factory in Europe. The company is reportedly at the advanced stage of talks with the Spanish side.

The presence of Chinese companies in Spain also includes other sectors, from transport and logistics to banking and telecommunications. Some 34 percent of these companies are actively investing in innovation and research and development, according to ICEX, the Spanish Institute for Foreign Trade.

Meanwhile, Calduch underlined that one of the best ways for the Spanish to foster more Chinese investment would be "to set up clusters in Spain and China to bring entrepreneurs together and provide them with favorable conditions for them to do business."

Good business relations ultimately depend on Chinese and Spanish people getting to know each other, he stressed, giving the example of Chinese students forging friendships while studying in Spain. "When people form relationships, they lose their fear of each other," the economist said.