English to China this week

Finance Minister Bill English is undertaking a long-planned visit to China this week, focusing on the economic developments taking place in China’s inland regions and what this means for New Zealand. 

This development is supported by the ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative, announced by President Xi Jinping in 2013, which seeks to create a ‘new silk road’ to improve trade links with Asia, Europe and the Pacific.

“China is New Zealand’s second largest export market. Developing and capitalising on New Zealand’s relationship with China is crucial in advancing our economic interests,” Mr English says.

“I will be meeting with senior counterparts in Beijing and then travelling to Xining, the capital of fast-growing Qinghai province which has research links with New Zealand universities. I will then visit Chengdu and Chongqing, which are two key high-growth inland areas with growing New Zealand business links.

“The visit will also provide a valuable opportunity to get an on-the-ground sense of the current situation in the Chinese financial system and better understand any potential flow on effects for New Zealand.”