Bulletin of the Swiss-Chinese Chamber of Commerce
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CONTENTS Table of Content K Board of the Chamber and its Chapters . .2–3 K Business Matters What is China’s Biggest Business Opportunity . 59–62 K Editorial . 4 China Challenges – Take Two . 63–64 Keep up Corporate Governance Standards . 65–66 K Chamber News Change is the Keyword . .6–7 K Legal Matters 2009 – Year of the Ox . 8 Revised Tax Regulations of the PRC . .66–67 Swiss Community Project . 9–10 M&A Deals Rarely Proceed Smoothly . .68–69 K Government Matters K Reviews New Swiss Ambassador to P .R . China . 11 Book Review: Supraplanung . 69–71 Visit of Chinese Minister for Water . .11–12 5th Economic Impulse Schaffhausen ‘08 . .71–75 Cooperation Program with China . 12–14 Field Trip to China 2008 . 75–78 The New Swiss Shengen Visa . 15–17 Engineering “Made in China” . 78–80 K Financial Crisis K News from Members CEOs & China Managers: Optimism in the Face . 18–21 Cotecna – Global Supply Chain Security Guide . .80–81 of Slowing Markets Mercuria Opens New Office in Beijing . 81 Euler Hermes Country Risk Ratings . .22–23 Digital Printing Business in China . .82–84 On Track to Resist: The Yangtze Delta Region . 24–26 in the Global Strom K Culture & Leasure Winter Escapes to Shangri-La . 84 K Economy RADO – Luxury Swiss Made . 85 China: Annual Economic Report – . 27–43 China Festival in Weggis . .86–87 November 2008 Update Das Grosse Chinesische Neujahrskonzert . 88–89 Economic Report Hong Kong 2008 Update . 43 Mummenschanz in China . 90–91 Yangtze River Delta in the Post-Olympic Era . 44–47 Tan Dun with Zurich Chamber Orchestra . 91–93 K HQ Locations K Services Hong Kong vs Shanghai vs Singapore . 48–49 Useful Contacts in China & Switzerland . .94–95 Regional Headquarters in Shanghai . 49–51 Membership Card Values . .96 Shanghai Real Estate Market Braces for Cold Winter .51–52 Structuring Investment in a Smart Way . 52 Asian Headquarters in Europe – . .54–57 A Strategy for Switzerland Fact Finding Mission 2008 . 57–58 Impressum :>0:: */05,:, Information Swiss-Chinese Chamber of Commerce Advertising: */(4),9 Bulletin of the Swiss-Chinese Chamber Höschgasse 89 Conditions available on website 6- of Commerce CH-8008 Zurich, Switzerland www .sccc .ch *644,9*, Tel . 044 / 421 38 88 Circulation: Fax 044 / 421 38 89 Deadline for next issue: In print 1’400 Ex . and on website . e-mail: info@sccc .ch 1/09 May 31 To the Members of the Chamber and of www .sccc .ch the Chapters in Geneva and Lugano; Disclaimer: among them the leading banks, trading Printing: The BULLETIN is a semester publica- companies, insurances and industrial werk zwei tion on Chinese information gathered firms . To Trade Organizations, Govern- Print + Medien Konstanz GmbH from various media and news services, ment Departments, leading Chambers of P . O . Box 2171 edited by the Swiss-Chinese Chamber of Commerce in Switzerland, Europe and CH-8280 Kreuzlingen Commerce and distributed to its mem- China . Switzerland bers and BULLETIN subscribers . The Tel . 0049/7531/999-1850 Chamber does not accept responsibility Responsible Editor: www .werkzwei-konstanz .de for accuracy of quotes or truthfulness of Susan Horváth, Executive Director content . BULLETIN 2 l 2008 1 BOARD OF THE CHAMBER AND ITS CHAPTERS Board of the Swiss-Chinese Chamber of Commerce Executive Committee Members: President: Kurt Haerri Member of the Executive Committee, Schindler Elevators Ltd ., Ebikon Vice President: Dr. Richard Friedl Vice President, ABB Switzerland, Baden Treasurer: Peter R. Schmid Head Executive Relations, Credit Suisse Group, Zurich Secretary: Wolfgang Schmidt-Soelch Partner, Heidrick & Struggles, Zurich Executive Director: Susan Horváth Swiss-Chinese Chamber of Commerce, Swiss-Hong Kong Business Association, Zurich Members: Dr. Theobald Tsoe Ziu Brun Attorney-at-Law, Brun studio legale e notarile, Lugano Alexandre F. Jetzer Member of the Board of Directors, Novartis AG, Basle Dr. Kurt Moser Küsnacht, former Director of economiesuisse (VORORT) Josef M. Mueller President, Geneva Chapter Dr. Esther Nägeli Attorney-at-Law, LL . M ., Nägeli Attorneys-at-Law, Zurich Honorary Members: Dr. Erwin Schurtenberger former Swiss Ambassador to China, Minusio Dr. Uli Sigg former Swiss Ambassador to China, Mauensee Dr. Marc Ronca Attorney-at-Law, Counsel, Schellenberg Wittmer, Zurich, Geneva Past President of Chamber, Zurich Board Members: Maurice Altermatt Head of External Affairs Department, Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry, Biel Lore Buscher Regional Director, Central & Eastern Europe, Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) Frankfurt am Main, Germany Arshad Chaudhry Vice President, Nestlé S .A ., Vevey Jean-Michel Chatagny Head of Asia, Member of Life & Health Executive Board Asia (LA), Swiss Reinsurance Company, Zurich Dr. Daniel V. Christen CEO, Assetis AG, Zurich Bruno W. Furrer CEO, BF Bruno Furrer Consultant, Steinhausen Hermann Gamper Tradelane Manager Asia-Pacific, DHL Logistics (Switzerland) Ltd ., Basle Dr. Beat Krähenmann Director, F . Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd ., Basle Dr. Gregor Kündig Member of the Executive Board, economiesuisse, Zurich Nicolas Pictet Partner, Pictet & Cie ., Geneva Jürg Reichen Head International Banking, Member of the Board, Zürcher Kantonalbank, Zurich Stefan Scheiber Managing Director, International Sales and Services, Bühler AG, Uzwil Dr. Reto Schiltknecht Group General Counsel, Zurich Financial Services, Zurich Dr. Ralf C. Schläpfer Partner, Head Strategy Advisory, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Zurich Erwin A. Senn CEO, Alseco Holding Ltd ., Freienbach Dr. Kurt E. Stirnemann Member of the Board of Directors of Georg Fischer AG, Schaffhausen Peter G. Sulzer Zurich Marco Suter Group Chief Financial Officer, Member of the Group Executive Board, UBS AG, Zurich Franziska Tschudi CEO, Wicor Holding AG, Rapperswil Lukas Utiger Vice President, Lonza Ltd ., Basle Dr. Jörg Wolle CEO, DKSH Holding Ltd ., Zurich 2 BULLETIN 2 l 2008 BOARD OF THE CHAMBER AND ITS CHAPTERS Geneva Chapter President: Josef M. Mueller Former Head of Nestlé in Greater China Region, IMD Executive in Residence, Lausanne Vice President: Maître Philippe Knupfer Lawyer, LL . M ., Geneva Secretray & Treasurer: Gérald Béroud Director and founder, SinOptic, Lausanne Local Board Members: Irmgard L. Müller Director, Beau-Rivage Palace, Lausanne André Übersax President, Swiss China Networking S .A ., Granges-Paccot SUN Shuangxi Director, Sunlight ACT S .A ., Geneva ZHANG Yafei Assistant de Direction, Shanghai Overseas S .A ., Geneva Ticino Chapter Chairperson: Dr. Theobald Tsoe Ziu Brun Attorney-at-Law and Notary, BRUN Studio legale e notarile, Lugano Local Board Members: Renato L. Bloch Attorney-at-Law, Bloch Law Offices, Lugano Andrea Fioravanti Attorney-at-Law, Studio legale Sganzini Barnasconi Peter Gaggini, Lugano Walter Landolt Attorney-at-Law, Lugano Nicola Simoneschi Director, TREINVEST S .A ., Lugano-Paradiso Silvio Tarchini Founder, FoxTown Factory Stores, Mendriso, Villeneuve, Rümlang Francesca Wölfler-Brandani Founder, Centro Culturale Cinese “Il Ponte”, Lugano Legal Chapter Zurich Chairperson: Dr. Esther Nägeli Attorney-at-Law, LL . M ., Nägeli Attorneys-at-Law, Zurich Here for You in Switzerland: Swiss-Chinese Chamber of Commerce Camera di Commercio Svizzera-Cina Höschgasse 89 Section Ticino CH-8008 Zurich c/o Brun Studio Legale e Notarile Phone +41-44-421 38 88, Fax +41-44-421 38 89 Via Ariosto 6 info@sccc .ch, www .sccc .ch Case postale 5251 President: Kurt Haerri CH-6901 Lugano Phone +41-91-913 39 11, Fax +41-91-913 39 14 Chambre de Commerce Suisse-Chine info@brunlaw .ch Section Romande Chairperson: Dr . Theobald Tsoe Ziu Brun 4, bd du Théâtre 1204 Genève Legal Chapter Zurich Phone +41-22-310 27 10, Fax +41-22-310 37 10 c/o Nägeli Attorneys-at-Law info .geneva@sccc .ch Phone +41-43-343 99 93, Fax +41-43-343 92 01 www .sinoptic .ch/scccgeneva/ law@naegeli-rechtsanwaelte .ch Office hours: Monday–Friday, 9 .00–12 .00 h Chairperson: Dr . Esther Nägeli President: Josef M . Mueller For full overview of useful contacts in China and Switzerland turn to pages 94 & 95 in this issue. BULLETIN 2 l 2008 3 EDITORIAL China – No Fast Games with a Giant markets had not been able to regulate itself and that government intervention was mandatory in order to limit the damage in our global market economy . Isn’t that something China has been blamed for in the past? I think it is time to learn from China: a strong govern- ment, acting fast and responsively by regulating the financial system – the backbone of every free market economy – has been proven as vital during the turmoil of financial markets during 2008 . China has acted quickly and decisively . The announced two-year, US$600 billion fiscal stimulus – equal to a stunning one-sixth of China’s entire gross domestic product – focuses primarily on the construction of economi- cally critical infrastructure, such as rail and energy networks . In its next stage of development, China’s rail system must far better serve the inland areas of China where actually large pockets of rural poverty and high unemployment persist, despite three dec- In the House of Switzerland during the Olympic Games in Beijing: (f.l.t.r.) John C. ades of economic reforms . In fact, while the coastal Liebeskind, President SwissCham China, Adelbert Bütler, CEO Bucherer AG, Kurt areas from the Pearl River Delta up to Dalian have Haerri and Peter Troesch, Vice President SwissCham China. prospered, much of inland China remains impover- ished . Building better roads, rail-systems and a more reliable and extensive electricity grid and water sys- tem is just what China needs in the years to come . The Olympic Games 2008 held in Beijing are history . Last but not least, this offers tremendous opportu- The 16-day sport event has brought enormous joy and nities also for Swiss companies . It is widely noticed enthusiasm to the world, and has won glory for both that production in the Pearl River Delta and among the host city Beijing and the Olympics . With over the East Coast has become more expensive recently . 10,000 athletes from 204 countries and regions taking Actually this delivers the proof concerning the sus- part and an audience of 4 .5 billion around the world tainability of the economic development in those have experienced great Games .