The Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (Forum Macau), which is celebrating its 20th anniversary, needs “new impetus” and greater recognition, businesspeople told Lusa. The three years of the pandemic “were very harmful” to business with China, due to the ‘zero Covid’ policy, which imposed restrictions on entering the country, said the secretary-general of the Luso-Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCILC).

The “impossibility of having a direct contact, through face-to-face initiatives, obviously affects above all the trust that is essential to do business,” Bernardo Mendia explained to Lusa.

Beijing began lifting the restrictions in mid-December and currently “everyone from business here in Portugal is returning to China to resume relations,” said the businessman. “There is a demand far above what it was before,” he added.

Brazil also “has a lot of interest” in taking advantage of China’s economic recovery, increased consumption and investment capacity, the president of the Brazil-China Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Service and Innovation (BraCham) told Lusa.

With the reopening of China, Bernardo Mendia believes that, “from the statements, there is new momentum” for Forum Macau, giving as an example the appointment, as of March 15, of a new delegate from Portugal in the institution, Márcia Cordeiro Guerreiro. “We hope that Forum Macau will quickly resume the activities and purpose for which it was created,” said the CCILC leader.

“The big companies have no need to resort to economic and political platforms, because they have great power, all companies have an interest in working with them,” stressed the Portuguese.

Henry Osvald agreed and recalled that Brazilian giants, such as meat company JBS and pulp producer Suzano, continued to export to China during the pandemic. But as for the small and medium businessmen, “they do benefit when this type of entity is active and when the environment is favorable for business to happen,” said Bernardo Mendia.

Macau has “a number of advantages” compared to mainland China, including the presence of the Portuguese language, Portuguese lawyers and Portuguese banks, as well as tax advantages, said the secretary general of CCILC. However, “the Macau authorities still lack a bit of organization, structuring” to promote the territory’s advantages, said Henry Osvald. “On the part of Brazil, both the government and the private sector, I think there is total interest” in doing business through Macau, Osvald said. But Brazilian companies “continue to go directly to China because there is that free access and much greater clarity,” he added.

Source: Pontofinal