Wellington Trade Delegation

The Wellington Mayoral Delegation has recently returned from China. Mayor Wade-Brown states the delegation was a great success as shown in the two major deals signed with The Inspired Collection and Airways New Zealand.

Council's China Trade Delegation strikes Gold

"The creativity of Wellington is truly reaping a global return with the beautiful designs from Inspired," said Mayor Celia Wade-Brown.

"Combined with the earlier Airways NZ agreement, this Village Goldsmith deal underlines how beneficial our Council-led delegations are for opening doors.

"The Village Goldsmith's success is the result of hard work, preparation and previous visits to Hong Kong and China. This delegation is about strengthening connections and helping to seal trade opportunities," said Mayor Wade-Brown.

Trade Focus on Smaller Chinese Cities

Radio New Zealand reports Agricultural exporters urged to Aim Low in China

Primary producers wanting to tap into the Chinese market have been told to focus on smaller cities there.

New Zealand China Trade Association director Graham Kearns delivered that advice at the annual Agricultural and Horticultural Outlook Summit in Wellington.

He says China's consumer middle class will grow to 600 million people by 2020 and while the Free Trade Agreement has increased trade, there's huge potential for more.

Mr Kearns offered agribusinesses some tips to achieve that, including to focus on smaller areas with populations of four or five million people, near bigger cities.

He also noted that emphasis on New Zealand as the source of the product was important.

Learing Chinese at School

National Party MP, Dr Jian Yang, argues Nelson schools need to 'look to the future' and teach more Chinese as a way to boost trade with China. MP urges Schools to teach Chinese.

National MP Jian Yang told a meeting at National's Nelson Luncheon Club that Nelson needed to invest in Chinese language skills to help it take up opportunities for growth in trade and tourism.

China was New Zealand's second-largest trading partner after Australia, and was the fastest-growing market for tourists coming to New Zealand, he said.

"It is out of step that Nelson, with such a strong exporting and visitor industry, is not looking to the future and investing in Chinese language skills," Dr Yang said.

Airways NZ's China Deal

Alan Wood writes China Deal a Boost for Airways New Zealand Training.

Airways New Zealand says an agreement with a Chinese aviation group will help boost air traffic control student training opportunities for its Christchurch and Palmerston North campuses.

Each extra student would be worth thousands of dollars in revenue.

Aviation training hubs in the two cities will become busier, and some Christchurch staff will be able to travel overseas on secondment as a result of business secured in both China and the Middle East, Airways New Zealand boss Ed Sims says.

He signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Sunday with the Beijing-based Civil Aviation Management Institute of China (CAMIC), a professional body for the industry.

Taipei's free trade negotiations

Jonathan Manthorpe writes in the Vancouver Sun about the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement and cross-strait relations. Manthorpe addresses the strategic significance of negotiations with New Zealand and Singapore.

Beijing's willingness to give Taiwan "diplomatic space" is coming to the test as Taipei proceeds with negotiations for free trade agreements with Singapore and New Zealand.

So far Beijing has not leaned on the New Zealand or Singaporean governments to curb the talks or tried to insist that economic agreements with Taiwan need its stamp of approval.

But Taiwanese officials are watching Beijing's reactions closely and are ready, for example, to downgrade the status of their deals with Singapore and New Zealand from treaty-like free trade agreements to less imposing commercial pacts.

 

Chinese Luxury Tourists

The new website 'Luxury New Zealand (新岛华旅)' set up by Pierre Gervois, showcases luxury tourist destinations in New Zealand to China's uber-rich.

Lois Cairns reports on this trend in Cream of Kiwi Luxury out to Woo Rich.

Rich Chinese tourists are making a beeline for New Zealand's luxury lodges.

Exclusive lodges such as Blanket Bay in Queenstown, where Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston honeymooned, and Huka Lodge in Taupo, where the Queen and Barbra Streisand have stayed, typically keep mum about their rich clientele but industry insiders say more and more of their guests are Chinese multimillionaires eager to enjoy the high life.

"They want to stay in the very best lodges because they want to be able to go home and brag to their friends - status is very important to the Chinese and they're willing to spend a lot of money to get the best," one insider said.

Wellington Mayoral Delegation to China

The Wellington Mayoral Delegation takes off for China this weekend. This year they are visiting Beijing, Tianjin, Hangzhou and Shanghai. 39 people will be on the delegation, including Wellington Mayor and staff, as well as a wide array of businesspeople and representatives from Wellington organisations. Full story found here. Quotes from Wellington Mayor Wade-Brown:

"Politicians open doors in China. That's why I'm leading this delegation and why Auckland Mayor Len Brown led a group to China recently.

"Mayors and senior politicians have status in China that they don't have back here in New Zealand."

I'm also particularly pleased with the interest from China in environmental services and clean technology services."

"We will also collectively promote Wellington as a wonderful destination for business, education, investment and tourism."

"Going all the way back to Mayor Jim Belich in the late 1980s, my predecessors have forged strong ties with China. It is essential for New Zealand's links with China - and our mutual understanding across cultures - to continue to make the effort to visit."