王小龙大使在新西兰中国贸易协会“50over50”网站发布仪式上的致辞

Mr. Martin Thomson

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

Kia ora!

It gives me great pleasure to attend today’s event to celebrate the remarkable growth of the New Zealand-China relationship over the 50 years from 1972 to 2022. Congratulations to NZCTA on the launch of the 50 over 50 website. I also wish to acknowledge the Association for the active role it has played over the years in advocating and promoting the development of China-New Zealand relations. The launch of the website, in itself a milestone, can help to showcase with some snapshots of some important moments and milestones in the relationship, both the comprehensiveness of the mutually beneficial partnership between us and how it has evolved over the long journey we have shared with each other, spanning 50 years and culminating in the significant progress we see today. Thanks to public support, business support and stewardship from successive generations of political leaders including, more recently, Prime Minister Helen Clark, Prime Minister John Key, who presided over 9 years of very fast growth of the relationship which brought out many major milestones, including the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership which was established back in 2014 during President Xi Jinping’s state visit to New Zealand. We will mark 10th anniversary of that very important Comprehensive Strategic Partnership next year.

Last year, the two sides jointly held a series of celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. In this opening year for the next 5 decades of our bilateral relations, the bilateral exchanges in various fields have gathered momentum. The visit by Prime Minister Hipkins to China opened a new chapter for our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, when the leaders of the two countries reached new consensus on charting the course for the development of the Partnership in both depth and width on the basis of mutual respect, mutual understanding and trust, and mutual benefit. Thanks to efforts by both sides, the visit was productive, culminating in the Joint Statement between the two Governments on further developing the partnership, on top of the conclusion of multiple intergovernmental and business-to-business instruments of cooperation, covering a wide range of areas in our comprehensive relationship, creating new growth points for the already strong partnership. 

Practical cooperation is a powerful engine for our overall relations, benefiting both countries, particularly both peoples. With economic complementarity, our interests were deeply intertwined. Our bilateral trade registered over NZ$40 billion in 2022, having grown exponentially from a mere NZ$7 million when the diplomatic relations were established 50 years ago. Through the Year that ended in May 2023, NZ export to China increased by 2.3%, while its import from China increased by 6%; NZ’s international visitors from China jumped from two thousand to more than fifty thousand. In addition, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement and the protocol of the upgraded FTA between China and New Zealand came into force last year, injecting fresh vitality to the trade and economic cooperation between the two countries. 

Currently, the two sides, while working to expand trade and broader practical cooperation in traditional sectors, are exploring new opportunities in such areas as climate change, clean energy, E-Vehicle, resilient infrastructure, new technology, and health care and wellbeing. There is huge potential in these areas. Our businesses can build fully on their respective strengths and promote high-quality and sustainable economic development in both countries through deeper cooperation.

I would also like to take this opportunity to share with you  China’s economic situation. Between 2013 and 2021, China’s economic growth contributed more than 38.6% to world economic growth annually, more than the G7 countries combined. According to the IMF, China will contribute a third of global growth this year. China is the main trading partner of over 140 countries and regions, making 320 million US dollars of direct investment around the world each day and attracting over 3,000 foreign businesses to China every month. China’s middle-income community, which currently stands at over 400 million, is expected to double to 800 million by 2035, which will further expand the supersized consumer market with arguably the biggest spending power globally on premium products from across the world, including from NZ. Obviously, China’s development has provided and will continue to provide opportunities, rather than challenges or risks, for the recovery and prosperity of the world.

As China is bringing its economy back onto a path of stable growth, global investors and international economists have adopted a more bullish outlook for the Chinese economy. I believe people of insight from all walks of life in New Zealand, particularly our friends in the business community, will grasp the trend of China’s modernization drive and more importantly, seize the opportunities it will generate for the rest of the world, including for China-NZ cooperation, and bring more benefits to the people of the two countries.

In the latter half of this year, China will hold a series of trade and economic cooperation-related events, including the China International Fair for Trade in Services, the 3rd High-level Forum on Belt and Road International Cooperation, and the 6th China International Import Expo. I encourage kiwi friends and businesses to take full advantage of the opportunities they offer.  

Finally, I wish the event a success, and may both countries have  a prosperous future! And may the friendship between China and New Zealand thrive forever!

Thank you!

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