On the 6th and 7th of June, “The 2nd UK-China Business Leader’s Summit” was held in London. More than 500 politicians, business leaders and experts from both countries attended the meeting to discuss new global opportunities, especially for cooperation between China and the UK in the world’s new economic situation. Yue Lei, Senior Vice President of Sanpower Group, was invited to attend the meeting. He noted that “People who share the same faith will never be defeated by distance”; although China and the UK are separated by thousands of miles, the “golden age” of China-UK relations has arrived, which has brought new opportunities for cooperation between enterprises in both countries.

The UK-China Business Leader’s Summit was sponsored by the UK-Chinese Business Association. This is the second summit and its theme is: “Investment & Innovation – A New Era of Global Industrial Integration”. With the advent of a “golden age” for China-UK relations, the summit has become the most influential exchange platform for business leaders in China and the UK.

Wang Qinmin, Vice Chairman of the CPPCC and Chairman of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, spoke at the opening ceremony of the summit and said that the differences between the Chinese and UK economies and their complementarity structures provides space for long-term economic cooperation, and private enterprise is an important force in this. Martin Donnelly, Secretary-General of the Office of Government Commerce, noted that the exchange between the business leaders of China and the UK increased the mutual trust and friendship between the two countries, and economic and trade relations are the most important area of China-UK relations and the essence of their “golden age”.

This summit consists of five sub-forums. The “Exploration of Transition to a Consumer-driven Economy during the New Economic Era” is the most talked about theme; Yue Lei, Senior Vice President of Sanpower Group, was the guest of this sub-forum and he also made the keynote speech on “Opportunities during China’s Transition to a Consumption-Driven Economy”.

Yue Lei said that there are three positive factors that can create opportunities in China. First, the policy itself is positive. Although there have been many voices pessimistic about China’s economy over the years, the growth rate of 7% still makes China the strongest growing economy in the world. With the transformation and upgrading of China’s economy, the market opportunities and investment opportunities are expanding. In the past year, The Fifth Plenary Session of the 18th Communist Party of China’s (CPC) Central Committee proposed accelerating the construction of a new system of opening to the outside world and improving the legalized, internationalized and facilitated business environment. The Chinese government emphasised the policy of the three “unchangeables” to the international community: China’s utilization of its foreign capital policy will not change, the protection of the legitimate rights and interests of foreign-invested enterprises will not change, and the direction to provide better services for the investment and development of foreign enterprises in China will not change.

Second, the reform is a positive factor. The transformation has become a high-frequency hot word in discussions about China’s economy. Investment, export and consumption were considered as the “troika” to boost the development of China’s economy in the past. In the context of the transformation, consumption has become a dark horse that gallops with ever quickening pace. In 2015, the consumption’s contribution to China’s economy accounted for more than 60% (more than RMB 30 trillion), which was a record high. However, compared with developed countries, we still have a long way to go. The USA’s consumption accounted for about 75% of its GDP. China’s turnaround goals should at least reach the level of developed countries. It is conceivable that this cake will continue to expand. Currently, China is experiencing an unprecedented trend of upgrading in quality consumption.

Finally, the market is a positive factor. The consumer is the greatest positive factor in the market. At present, China’s middle class is growing and this emerging social stratum represents the most active and the most powerful consumer power. They are the practitioners and promoters to explore the transformation to a consumer-driven economy. According to a research report from Credit Suisse, the wealth of China’s middle class reached USD 7.34 trillion in 2015 and was second only to the USA and Japan. However, the population of the middle classes increased to become the highest in the world and reached 109 million.

After the sub-forum had ended, Yue Lei accepted interviews by the media, where he noted that Sanpower Group has a development concept that is combining with domestic and overseas markets and coordinating with resources at home and abroad, good UK brands and resources will be brought to the Chinese consumers, and goods and resources with Chinese characteristics and advantages will also be brought to the UK for development. He revealed that Sanpower Group is considering establishing experience zones with Chinese cultural characteristics at more than 60 House of Fraser department stores.