China-Switzerland is a win-win strategy

8 years ago - Published in Finance, Fundamental Analysis

China and Switzerland have enjoyed a longstanding win-win partnership and China has an optmisstic economic outlook, the Swiss minister of Economic Affairs, Education and Research, Johann Schneider-Ammann said in an interview with Xinhua, chinese media on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum.

"I am very proud that Chinese President Xi Jinping could come to my country and stay four days," Schneider-Ammann said. "In April last year we established such good personal relationships, and I'm proud of this success." 

Schneider-Ammann, a businessman formerly in the mechanical engineering sector, was one of the architects of the China-Switzerland "innovative strategic partnership," China's first and the only strategic partnership named after "innovation." 

"Everything goes through innovation and goes through proved competitiveness," he explained. 

As a proponent of free trade, the federal councilor has been a strong supporter of the China-Switzerland Free Trade Agreement that has been in effect since 2014. 
"The free trade agreement was a success from the very beginning," Schneider-Amman commented. "In the first year of the trade agreement we achieved a growth in mutual trade of about 3 percent plus, which is more or less a doubling of what we achieved globally in the same period of time." 

Commenting on the historic speech delivered by Xi on Tuesday, the first Chinese president to address the World Economic Forum in Davos, Schneider-Ammann noted he was very impressed. 

"That was a true statesperson representing the People's Republic of China and more," the Swiss politician insisted. "Xi Jinping mentioned yesterday that the open market policy needs to be continued. That was a very clear statement and I was very happy about it."

Although China and Switzerland are different in social systems and development stages, bilateral ties have been characterized by a number of "firsts" over the past decades.

Switzerland was among the first Western countries to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. After China began its reform and opening-up drives in late 1970s, Switzerland set up China's first industrial joint venture in 1980.