Embassy: More and more Chinese companies exploring opportunities to invest in Azerbaijan

China and Azerbaijan are united by long-term cooperation in political, economic, social and many other fields. However, the most important part of cooperation between the two countries can be called the economic sector. Thus, in the first eight months of this year alone, bilateral trade amounted to $939 million, an increase of 14.7% compared to the same period last year.

Report presents an exclusive interview with Ma Chi, Economic and commercial counsellor of the Chinese Embassy in Azerbaijan:

- What areas of cooperation between China and Azerbaijan does the embassy pay the most attention to?

- In recent years, under the strategic leadership of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, China and Azerbaijan have tirelessly strengthened political mutual trust, established fruitful practical cooperation, strengthened humanitarian ties and deepened traditional friendship. Azerbaijan is China's important partner in the joint construction of One Belt, One Road. On the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, the Chinese side is ready to share the development potential with the Azerbaijani side and strive for common development to give our countries and the countries of the South Caucasus more opportunities.

First of all, we are ready to further expand the scale and improve the commodity structure of the trade. China's advanced manufacturing industry has been widely recognized worldwide, and China is ready to further assist Azerbaijan in transforming the industry and providing Azerbaijani consumers with more high-quality goods at affordable prices. At the same time, we welcome and are ready to support Azerbaijani enterprises in entering the Chinese market and expanding the export of high-quality and in-demand products to China.

We are also ready to deepen investment and project cooperation in various areas, such as alternative and renewable energy sources, processing and production, modern agriculture, digital economy and information technology, and logistics. The Azerbaijani economy is showing positive development dynamics and has a favorable business environment, and more and more Chinese companies are actively exploring the possibilities of investing and starting a business in Azerbaijan.
In addition, we are ready to expand cooperation in the transport sector.

China supports Azerbaijan in fully exercising its geographical advantages, improving the infrastructure of cross-border and multimodal transportation, increasing the capacity and efficiency of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Corridor, improving the quality of services provided to the China-Europe freight rail link, and attracting more shippers so that Azerbaijan plays a more active role in transportation between China and Europe.

Finally, we are interested in strengthening cooperation in the field of people's welfare and promoting the development of the real economy. China is ready to actively participate in the quality development of Azerbaijan's urban infrastructure, energy conservation and emission reduction, green economy, improvement of medical care, education and training, and promote contacts and exchange of experience between the financial institutions of the two countries, constructively discuss issues of settlements in national currencies and expand the scale of financing, providing even more financial products for genuine economic cooperation between the two countries.

- What are the economic and trade achievements of China and Azerbaijan in the framework of the joint construction of One Belt, One Road?

- Azerbaijan is one of the first countries that responded to the One Belt, One Road initiative and actively supported it. Azerbaijan's national development strategy "Revival of the Great Silk Road" is fully consistent with the concept of joint construction of One Belt, One Road. Cooperation between China and Azerbaijan in the joint construction of the One Belt, One Road is moving forward thanks to the personal participation and support of the heads of the two countries. Despite many adverse factors, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the slow recovery of the global economy, the instability of the production and logistics chains, trade between China and Azerbaijan has maintained a stable development trend. China ranks fifth among Azerbaijan's trading partners and is the third largest source of imports.

Bilateral cooperation is flourishing in areas such as oil and gas exploration and exploitation, oil and gas services, information and communications, processing and manufacturing, alternative and renewable energy sources, and cross-border transportation. Chinese companies are investing in the construction of the largest ceramics production facility in the South Caucasus, providing network infrastructure and advanced smart village solutions in the Zangilan district. Also, two new projects of power plants using alternative and renewable energy sources with a total installed capacity of 470 MW will be launched soon, the developers of which are Chinese enterprises. In addition, China has participated in a number of Azerbaijani projects in agriculture and food processing. Thanks to the parties' joint efforts, the volume of freight rail traffic through the Caspian Sea and Azerbaijan towards Europe has noticeably increased, opening up new opportunities for cross-border transport cooperation between China and Europe. At the recent SCO summit held in Samarkand, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev unanimously decided to increase mutual support, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields and promote its stable and practical development. We are confident that future cooperation between our countries on the joint construction of the One Belt, One Road initiative will further expand.

- Is the China-Azerbaijan trade turnover growing and in what areas? What are your plans to increase the volume of trade in the future?

- Since the beginning of this year, China and Azerbaijan have overcome the instability of global production and supply chains and the impact caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and have increased bilateral trade despite negative trends. According to China's statistics, in the first eight months of this year, bilateral trade totaled $939 million, up 14.7% year-on-year. Of this amount, imports to China from Azerbaijan accounted for $211 million, which is 10.5% more than last year.

China's exports to Azerbaijan amounted to $728 million, an increase of 15.9% compared to the same period last year. China's main exports to Azerbaijan were equipment and mechanical devices (up 23.4%), electrical machinery and equipment (up 55.9%) and vehicles (up 37.9%).

China invites Azerbaijani enterprises to actively participate in the China International Import Expo (CIIE), China-Eurasia EXPO, China Import and Export Fair (Canton Fair), China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS), China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT) to expand cooperation. We are confident that with the efforts of both sides, the trade turnover between China and Azerbaijan will continue to grow.

- What can you call the best socioeconomic achievements of China over the past decade?

- In the decade since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in 2012, China has been able to withstand profound and complex changes in domestic and global development brought about by unprecedented global changes and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The country overcame difficulties, pioneered and innovated, made efforts for high-quality development, and achieved new accomplishments.

The first thing to note is a significant increase in the combined power of the state and international influence. From 2013 to 2021, China's average annual GDP growth was 6.6%, and China's contribution to global economic growth exceeded 30%. In 2021, China's GDP was 114.4 trillion yuan (about $17.7 trillion), and China's share in the global economy was 18.5%. Foreign exchange reserves amounted to $3.25 trillion, and according to this indicator, China has firmly consolidated its world leadership.

The second is the strengthening of the construction of the primary industries and infrastructure. In 2021, the volume of grain production amounted to 680 million tons, and for the seventh year in a row, the country produced over 650 million tons of grain. The length of railways increased to 151,000 km, and motor roads to 5.28 million km. About 1.425 million 5G base stations have been completed and put into operation, and the world's largest 5G network has been established. Also in 2021, 4.13 billion tons of raw coal, 207.6 billion cubic meters of natural gas and almost 200 million tons of crude oil were produced; power generation capacity reached 2.38 billion kW, and in terms of the capacity of hydro, wind, solar and nuclear power plants under construction, China firmly ranked first in the world, becoming a global leader in the field of non-fossil energy sources.

The third is the accelerated formation of a new structure of comprehensive openness. The scale of China's trade is growing steadily. In 2021, the total value of merchandise trade amounted to $6.05 trillion, placing China at the world's top for the fifth year. The total volume of trade in services amounted to $821.2 billion, providing the second place in the world. The structure of trade continues to improve. In 2021, the volume of imports and exports of total trade accounted for 61.6% of total imports and exports. Exports of capital-intensive and knowledge-intensive products, as well as high-value-added services, showed rapid growth. Bilateral investment has reached a new level. In 2021, the actual use of foreign capital amounted to $173.5 billion, and the volume of foreign direct investment amounted to $145.2 billion. From 2013 to 2021, the total non-financial foreign direct investment amounted to $1.13 trillion. According to this indicator, China also leads the world.

The fourth is the noticeable results provided by the joint construction of One Belt, One Road. As of the end of 2021, China and more than 170 countries and international organizations have signed over 200 documents on the joint construction of One Belt, One Road. From 2013 to 2021, the volume of imports and exports between China and countries along the One Belt, One Road increased from 6.5 trillion yuan to 11.6 trillion yuan (about $1.62 trillion), with an average annual growth rate of 7. 5%; total direct investment in these countries reached $161.3 billion. Rail transportation along the China-Europe route is developing at a rapid pace. As of January 2022, over 50,000 trips were conducted. Only from January to July of this year, 8,990 flights were made and 869,000 TEUs were sent, respectively 3% and 4% more compared to the same period last year. So far, China has established 21 free trade zones and signed 19 free trade agreements with 26 countries and regions. On January 1, 2022, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) entered into force, and the world's largest free trade area officially began operations.

In mid-October this year, Beijing is hosting the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, at which the goals and objectives of China's development for the next five years and even longer will be set with a scientific approach. China will work hand in hand with all countries of the world, including Azerbaijan, to create a community of common destiny for mankind and fight for a more beautiful world.