Foreign companies strengthen their footprint in Shenzhen

Photo shows a night view of the Houhai area in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong province. (Photo/Leng Wen)

At Qianhai in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong province, the bonded maintenance center of German health tech company Siemens Healthineers provides global after-sales support for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) equipment.

Simultaneously, next-generation digital elevator technology from Finnish manufacturer KONE is quickly reaching markets across the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Foreign banks and financial institutions from the UK, Singapore, and elsewhere are establishing operations in the Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong International Financial City.

With its high degree of openness and strong economic vitality, Shenzhen continues to strengthen its appeal as a global investment destination.

Throughout the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), Shenzhen registered 44,000 new foreign-invested enterprises, and the volume of foreign investment actually utilized in the city surpassed 300 billion yuan (about $45.05 billion). More than 340 Fortune Global 500 companies have invested in the city.

The latest figures show that Shenzhen's actual utilization of foreign investment exceeded 44 billion yuan in the first nine months of this year, up more than 60 percent year on year.

"When I first came here more than a decade ago, workers were still lining the production lines," said Zhang Hongliang, vice president of operations for Flex's Industrial Products business in Asia-Pacific, beside an automated production line at Flextronics Electronics Technology (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd.

Photo shows an intelligent manufacturing workshop at the Shenzhen factory of French auto parts maker Valeo. (Photo courtesy of Bao'an district, Shenzhen)

Today, the facility is the company's only pilot "future factory" in Asia. Automated equipment, integrated digital systems, and AI algorithms drive its production lines, doubling productivity per employee.

In the early years of reform and opening-up, Shenzhen's flexible policies as a special economic zone and convenient port access attracted large numbers of foreign manufacturers. In 1987, Flex, a technology company founded in Silicon Valley in the U.S., established its first factory in the Chinese mainland in Shekou, Shenzhen. The company has continued to expand its investment in the city ever since.

"Shenzhen's highly efficient supply chains, robust digital ecosystem, and proactive government support for technological upgrades have laid a solid foundation for the company's transition to intelligent manufacturing," Zhang said. The achievements made in Shenzhen are now being rapidly replicated across Flex's manufacturing facilities worldwide.

As Shenzhen steps up efforts to build a world-class automotive hub, French auto parts maker Valeo is becoming increasingly integrated into the local automotive industry chain, advancing technological upgrades and optimizing production in intelligent driving and smart cockpit systems.

"China is no longer just the world's largest automotive market. It has also become a global 'fitness center' for the automotive industry and a demanding testing ground," said Zhou Song, president of Valeo China.

Around 30 percent of the value of intelligent connected vehicles comes from the information technology industry, which aligns closely with Shenzhen's industrial foundation and innovation ecosystem, Zhou added.

Citizens and visitors enjoy a stroll along the waterfront promenade at Shenzhen Bay Park in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong province. (Photo/Ran Guangjun)

At Siemens Healthineers' Shenzhen base, more than a dozen MRI systems stand in rows as they undergo final testing before being shipped to Australia, Japan, Thailand and other markets. By the end of 2025, the facility had delivered more than 10,000 MRI and angiography equipment to over 120 countries and regions.

Siemens Healthineers established its Shenzhen operations in 2002. Back then, China's medical device industry was still in its early stages. An MRI system involves thousands of components, and a local supply chain was yet to be established.

"We have remained committed to localizing our operations and helped develop more than 300 local suppliers. Locally sourced components now account for 80 percent of our finished products," said Ma Tianshi, general manager of Siemens Shenzhen Magnetic Resonance Ltd.

"We remain committed to investing in Shenzhen and deepening our presence in China, strengthening our intelligent manufacturing capabilities to serve both the Chinese and global markets," said Ma.

As more foreign companies establish and expand their operations in Shenzhen, the city is evolving from a manufacturing base into an important center for global innovation.

In the first half of this year, foreign investment in actual use in Shenzhen's high-tech industries accounted for more than 70 percent of the city's total utilized foreign investment. The city is now home to more than 200 foreign-funded R&D centers, employing over 30,000 researchers.

In March this year, KONE officially opened its southern China headquarters in Qianhai.

"KONE's presence in China has evolved from sales and manufacturing to R&D and, more recently, innovation," said Xie Jijun, senior vice president of KONE Greater China. The company is now introducing digital, green and energy-efficient technologies in the Chinese market before taking them global.

The rapid growth of emerging and future industries in Shenzhen is also drawing international financial institutions to the city.

HSBC Bank (China) Co., Ltd. has set up a team in Shenzhen to provide financial services for technology and innovation companies. The team focuses on cross-border fintech innovation in the Greater Bay Area and has launched a range of innovative products that leverage digital technology and are tailored to the needs of technology and innovation companies.

"This reflects our confidence in Shenzhen's technology and innovation companies and its emerging industries, as well as our commitment to supporting their growth," said Li Qile, general manager for the Greater Bay Area at HSBC Bank (China) Co., Ltd.

Shenzhen has consistently worked to attract and utilize high-quality foreign investment while further opening up its economy. In December 2025, the city introduced measures to further attract and utilize foreign investment, strengthening policy support for opening up key sectors, improving the business environment and facilitating investment.

Going forward, Shenzhen will actively advance institutional opening-up and develop itself into a high-level international trade hub, said an official from the Investment Promotion Bureau of Shenzhen Municipality.