Dragon News - No. 1, 2012

China’s new five-year plan will create opportunities for Swedish companies that o!er solutions

for the environment.

Time togo green

No.01

M E M B E R M A G A Z I N E F O R S W E D I S H C H A M B E R S O F C O M M E R C E I N H O N G K O N G A N D C H I N A

2012

6Opinion

Go East, Go West!

20Executive talk

Helping companies to be more secure

50The chamber and I

Expanding the chamber activities

ADVERTISERS

APC Logistics page 31, Bamboo page 41, B&B Tools page 39, Finnair page 2

Environmental Air of Sweden (EAS) page 47, Executive Homes page 49

Handelsbanken page 9, Iggesund Paperboard page 17

Johnny’s Photo & Video Supply page 34, Mannheimer Swartling pages 26-27

Nordea page 37, Primasia page 45, Radisson Blu page 29

Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) page 52, Scandinavian Furniture page 45

Scania page 37, Scan Global Logistics page 49, SEB page 5

Sigtuna Boarding School page 47, Swedbank page 33, Swedish Trade Council page 43

Vinge page 35, Volvo page 51, Work Space page 19

Thank you!

APC Logisticsfor your immense generosity shipping and distributing Dragon News in China, Hong Kong, Asia and Sweden.

Iggesund Paperboardfor being the proud sponsor for the paperboard cover of Dragon News magazine in 2009. Cover printed on Invercote® Creato 220gsm.

Scandinavian Airlines

for your generous distribution of Dragon News on SAS flights from Beijing to Scandinavia.

The Swedish Chambers of Commerce in Hong Kong and China

PublisherSwedish Chambers of Commercein Hong Kong and ChinaFor advertising inquiries, please contact respective chamber’s o!ceThe opinions expressed in articles in Dragon News are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher.

Editorial management, design and printingBamboo Business Communications LtdTel: +852 2838 4553Fax: +852 2873 3329www.bambooinasia.com [email protected] director: Johnny ChanDesigner: Victor DaiEnglish editor: Chris Taylor

Cover photo: iStockphoto

INQUIRIESSwedish Chamber of Commerce in Hong KongRoom 2503, 25/F, BEA Harbour View Centre56, Gloucester Road, Wanchai, Hong KongTel: +852 2525 0349E-mail: [email protected]: www.swedcham.com.hkGeneral Manager: Eva KarlbergFinance & Administration Manager: Maria TornvingJubilee Intern: Dan Fjeldheim Ek

INQUIRIESSwedish Chamber of Commerce in ChinaRoom 313, Radisson Blu Hotel6A, East Beisanhuan Road, Chaoyang DistrictBeijing 100028, People’s Republic of ChinaTel: +86 10 5922 3388, ext 313Fax: +86 10 6462 7454E-mail: [email protected]: www.swedishchamber.com.cnGeneral Manager: Yvonne ChenMember Service & Sales Manager Beijing: Karin RoosWebmaster & Finance Assistant: Jaycee YangAdministration Assistant: Vika Jiao

Shanghai ContactMember Service & Sales Manager Shanghai: Johanna PollnowTel: +86 21 6217 1271Fax: +86 21 6217 0562Mobile: +86 1368 179 7675E-mail: [email protected]

CONTENTS No.0120124

8

42

44

46

Editorial

Snippets

Green business seminar in Hong Kong

Chamber news

Obituary: Mats Johansson

Cover story:On a green boat to China

10

6 Opinion: Bengt Johansson

20 Executive talk: Lars-Åke Severin

24 Feature: Christina Gustafsson

Chamber activities in Hong Kong28

Chamber activities in Beijing/Shanghai30

New members32

Feature: Children’s rights40

10

22

22 Young Professional interview: Mary Huynh

20

24

48 After hours

50 The chamber and I: Katarina Nilsson

DRAGONNEWS 3

Dear Reader,

This issue of Dragon News will focus on the environment. In recent years, even expats coming to China for a short period of time are a!ected by increasing air pollution, as well as other environmental and food health hazards. But Sweden has not always been that good either.

No one in the "rst half of the 20th century would have thought of taking a swim in central Stockholm or "sh for dinner there. #e air and the water was "lthy, to say the least. As late as in the late 1960s Sweden had no e!ective environmental legislation. In the early 1970s, a company in Teckomatorp (a small village in the south of Sweden) buried barrels "lled with poisonous material. People living next to the factory began to complain about the water and an increased number of allergies. #e outcries from the villagers did not bother the authori-ties at all, but one brave woman, Monica Nilsson, alerted the press. An article was prepared but when the general manager of the factory threatened to sue the newspaper, the article was never published. But Monica Nilsson did not give up, and later the barrels were found.

At "rst, the company claimed the barrels did not contain any toxic waste. Law suits and criminal charges proved useless as the

EDITORIAL

Better environment, better business

Mats HarbornChairman

Swedish Chamber ofCommerce in China

Ulf OhrlingChairman

Swedish Chamber ofCommerce in Hong Kong

company went bankrupt. #ere were some thousand barrels containing toxic waste buried in the ground and all of them were rusting. It was considered not economically viable to clean up the area. Part of the area was planned to be cleaned to some extent as late as in 2010 at an estimated cost of some SEK 180 million (about the same in RMB). Today the environmental situation in Sweden and the rest of Europe has improved enormously. Environmental pressure groups and political activists created the needed incentives to make politicians do something about the environment. Now everyone is rightly proud of the environment.

So what is the recipe for a better environ-ment? We believe the answer lies in awareness and accountability. #e public has the right to be properly informed, although it may seem tempting to companies and to politi-cians to try to hide any problems and hope they go away. However, when the air is so thick you can carve it with a knife, it is impossible to pretend the problem will go away. Recent dis-cussions in Beijing as to whether to measure PM10 or PM2.5 (air particles that are less than 10 or 2.5 micrometres in size) become laughable when everyone can see, smell and feel that the air quality in that city has seri-ously deteriorated since the temporary, but

wonderful blue skies of the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008.

In Hong Kong, politicians try to shift the blame on the factories over the border despite the fact that some of the worst pollution comes from roadside pollution and shipping in Hong Kong itself.

#e question now, both in China and Hong Kong, is whether one can expect the environmental situation to improve when awareness is lacking and there is a very low degree of accountability. According to the Hedley Environmental Index, air pollution in Hong Kong over the last "ve years has resulted in 3,200 prema-ture deaths, 160,000 hospital bed days and 7.4 million doctor visits, all at a staggering economic loss of HK$40 billion. What are the equivalent statistics for Beijing, Shanghai and Chongqing? And how many Teckomatorp are there in China?

A good economy is about more than high pro"ts as negative e!ects on the environment also come at a price. And the sooner society is prepared to pay that price, the better for everyone. #e beautiful thing is that not only does it pay o! for governments to invest in a cleaner environment, but also for private busi-nesses. Green business is pro"table business. #e Shanghai World Expo slogan was so right: Better city, better life, and we would like to add a tagline to that catch-cry: better business.

Jon

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4 DRAGONNEWS

The consul general of Sweden in Shanghai, Bengt Johansson, started his career in 1972 as assist-ant to the Swedish Trade Commissioner in Prague. He then worked at the Swedish Trade Council, the Swedish Ministry of Commerce and the Swedish Foreign Ministry, where he headed the section for trade with China.

From 1988 to 1999 he was consul at the Consu-

late General of Sweden in Hong Kong, minister at the Embassy of Sweden in Beijing, director at the Swedish Trade Council in Taipei and Sweden’s first consul general in Shanghai. From 1999 to 2008, Johansson held various high positions at the Swed-ish Foreign Ministry, the EU Commission and the Swedish Prime Minister’s o!ce, before returning to Shanghai for a second spell as consul general.

In 2000, China announced its ‘Go West’ policy, but not much happened at first. Now, there is a steady

flow of companies moving westward. But how long can a trend last? Sweden’s consul

general in Shanghai, Bengt Johansson, sees history in China repeating itself.

TEXT: Bengt Johansson, Consul General, [email protected]: iStockphoto

he latest issue of the magazine Shanghai Talk has a

powerful message on the cover: “Go West to Chengdu!” You hear such statements often in Shanghai these days. #ose who are young and think big should go to Chengdu or Chongqing. You read about art galleries that are being set up and of Chinese professionals returning home to Sichuan from Beijing and Shanghai.

Economic geography in China is a fasci-nating game. #e country develops in leaps and bounds, and we can seldom predict the next development. West China saw two earlier large in$ows of Chinese in the last century. A number of institutions and universities moved to Sichuan and Yunnan during the Second World War, and huge heavy industry invest-ments were made in the 1950s. In 1979, the wind turned when the four special economic zones (SEZs) were formed and Hong Kong capital was lured to these southern port cities.

When I came to Shanghai to open the consulate in 1996, Shanghai was already dynamic but still in the shadow of the southern provinces. Only in 1998 did we reach the level of 100 Swedish nationals in our books. #e infrastructure of the city was, however, excellent – no tra%c queues – and we could foresee a steady growth of our community. When the “Go West” policy was announced in

When the ‘Go West’ policy was announced in 2000, I did not think

much would amount to the idea.”

2000, I did not think much would amount to the idea. #ere was still plenty of room for expansion on the eastern coast; migrant labour was abun-dant for decades to come, and long distance transportation was erratic.

When I returned to Shanghai in 2008, the mood had changed. Migrant labour was no longer a sustainable solution. Workers were exploited and had not been given hukou – residential registration – rights. #e "nancial crash in 2008 seemed to kill the southern Chinese migrant-labour based export industry, and in East China labour started to become expensive. Suddenly “Go West” really was an option for new investors.

How long can a trend last? A decade ago o%ce rents in Saigon were the highest in the world. Every multinational cor-poration seemed to be setting up o%ce

there. #e boom lasted only a couple of years. Development reaches saturation when prob-lems outnumber the possibilities. #e problem I see for West China is that transportation by road to East China takes four to "ve days.

#e Chinese coastline has the de"nite advantage in its ports. Ningbo is the fastest growing port in the world but only attracts a fraction of the companies that want to set up in Suzhou. #ere, the Singapore-inspired economic zone administration is the big asset.

I recall a visit to former Shanghai mayor Xu Kuangdi at end of the 1990’s. When he was asked if competition between Shanghai and Hong Kong was not a zero sum game, he answered that China was like a small Boeing with two engines. In 10 years, he said, the economy will be like a big airplane requiring four engines – for example by adding Qingdao and Dalian. All the same, I have not heard much about Qingdao and Dalian since then.

#e Swedish community in Shanghai and Jiangsu grows every year, numbering 1,604 in December 2011, an increase of 25 per cent. #is trend will continue, I am convinced, even if a number of companies move west-ward. #ere will be a need for a consulate in West China as biometric requirements for

T

1,604The number of Swedes in

Shanghai and Jiangsu Province in December 2011.

A decade ago, o!ce

rents in Saigon were the highest in the world [but] the boom lasted only a couple of years.”

visas from 2013 requires us to be where clients are (life is di%cult for companies who are not where we are), but where exactly? Half of the consulates today are in Chengdu, and half in Chongqing. #is, in itself, is a complicating factor. Lufthansa $ies to Chengdu and Xi’an; Finnair starts to $y to Chongqing in May.

Have we faced such choices before? Yes, is the short answer.

In a study I am carrying out about the historical Swedish presence in China, I note

that this discussion was already underway in 1850 and has been going on al-most entirely ever since. We moved our Honorary Con-sulate General from Canton to Shanghai in 1863 in view of the promising ship-ping prospects. Leading

business groups lobbied for a carrier consulate and in 1865 Herman Annerstedt was sent to Hong Kong to open one. He returned next year without completing the task. He wrote to King Oscar II that the idea was stupid. China business was best conducted in London and Hamburg, he argued. #e Norwegians, how-ever, pushed for a strong consulate in Shanghai to serve their shipping interests.

After the separation from Norway in 1905, Sweden started a trade o!ensive, send-ing Gustaf Wallenberg to Tokyo, where he also served as envoy in China. To lobby for

his trade projects, he often needed to go to the imperial court in Beijing. He argued for a Swedish legation there. #e republican revolu-tion made the issue of the capital an open question, but Wallenberg stuck to his guns, and was supported by the vice consul in Hong Kong, Anton Nilsson. #e consul general in Shanghai argued against it, in the spirit of “Where you stand depends on where you sit”, but lost and the legation was opened in 1920. When China moved its capital to Nanjing, the legation was moved to Shanghai. During the Second World War the legation moved to Chongqing and then to Nanjing. When the civil war ended Sweden returned to Beijing in 1950 and closed the consulate in Shanghai in 1956. #e rest is as we say history.

Nothing is new under the sun. b

6 DRAGONNEWS DRAGONNEWS 7

“Today, we have some of the worst air quality in the world, certainly by the standard of a devel-oped economy … It is quite clear [that] the govern-ment is prepared to trade o" children’s health in favour of business infrastructure development.” Professor Tony Hedley in Radio Television Hong Kong’s (RTHK’s) Backchat pro-gramme in January 2012. Follow the Hedley Environmental Index in Hong Kong at http://hedleyindex.sph.hku.hk. Just a warning, it could be scary ...

QU

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E N V I RO N M E N TA L S N I P P E TS

Dongtan – an eco-city flop The Chongming Dongtan Eco-city was sup-

posed to be “the world’s first,” as press re-leases billed it back in 2005. A grassy island near the crowded metropolis of Shanghai was to be transformed from a marshy back-water into a gleaming community of energy-e!cient buildings housing 50,000 people. At least, that was the idea behind the project, which was designed by the British engineer-ing giant Arup.

Today, nearly nothing has been built and construction has halted. Although the project was widely publicised internationally, most lo-cals knew little about it. The political leaders who championed the project were ousted in a corruption scandal and their successors have allowed construction permits to lapse.

Dongtan is not the only eco-city project in China to collapse. There are several others, including the Huangbaiyu project in north-east China’s Liaoning province.

Did you know … … that the air pollution generally emitted

from ocean-going vessels is such that 16 large ships emit as much sulphur as all the cars in the world combined? Besides, says Clear the Air – a charity organisation com-mitted to improving the air quality in Hong Kong – we have to bear in mind that there are 100,000 ships of various sizes on the seas today. International shipping today ac-

counts for 8 to 10 per cent of sulphur emis-sions from all types of fossil fuels and also contributes to nearly 30 per cent of global releases of nitrogen oxides.

The rapid population influx to China’s cities is creating severe environmental problems in the metropolitan areas. One solution is to build sustainable cities, or “eco-cities”, and some of the world’s most ambitious such projects are underway – 40 of them country-wide. China’s long-term plan is to build 200 eco-cities for about half a billion people.

The largest project is, so far, the Tangshan Caofeidian International Eco-city, some 200 kilometres southeast of Beijing. Urban plan-ners, architects, engineers and technical consultants from the Swedish engineering and design company Sweco have taken part in planning of the first phase, a 30-square-kilometre area.

The goals are high in terms of ecological, economic and social sustainability. Among other things, Caofeidian is intended to be climate-neutral, using up to 95 per cent renewable energy. The city is also planned to be flexible, resource- and cost-e"ective, accessible and, not least, beautiful.

Another ambitious project is the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-city, located on a 30-kilometre parcel of non-arable coastal land just outside Tianjin. The futuristic devel-opment is being designed and developed as

a joint venture between the Chinese govern-ment and the Surbana Urban Planning Group, a Singaporean engineering firm.

It is being built according to a master plan with 26 key performance indicators (KPIs) that consider everything from the quality of ambient air and tap water, to the proportion of green buildings and the use of water from non-traditional sources. Half of the city’s wa-ter supply is expected to come from desalina-tion and recycling. The project will also o"er subsidised housing to make it possible for people from all economic strata to live there.

Sweden is also involved in a project in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, named the Sino-Swedish Low Carbon Eco-city, located in the Taihu New City. The Swedish Trade Council has a coop-eration agreement with the city of Wuxi to develop cooperation in sustainable business.

Other eco-city projects in China include the Shenzhen Guangming Eco-city in Guangdong Province, the Yangzhou Eco-city in Jiangsu Province, the Nanjing Eco-city in Jiangsu Province (where several eco-cities and eco-business parks are under develop-ment), the Huaibei Eco-city in Anhui Province, the Langfang Eco-city, outside of Beijing, among many others.

Guide for safe shopping A report released in January by the envi-

ronmental organisation Greenpeace showed that most products found at five super-markets in China contain residues of one or more pesticides, and in some cases, these pesticides are either banned or the amount of residues exceeds legal limits.

In November, Greenpeace randomly pur-chased 35 samples of fruits and vegetables from five supermarkets in Beijing, Chengdu and Guangzhou. Of the 35 samples, all but five contained pesticide residues.

As a result, Greenpeace has put together a guide for consumers to help them avoid supermarkets that sell dangerous food. The guide, released in December, can be found on the Greenpeace website, www.greenpeace.org/eastasia/press/releases, unfortunately only in Chinese.

“Consumers have a great weapon in the fight for safe food – choice,” Greenpeace food and agriculture campaigner Wang Jing said. “If we choose not to buy unsafe food, then supermarkets won’t sell them.”

Eco-cities all over China

8 DRAGONNEWS

TEXT: Jan Hökerberg, Bamboo, [email protected]

China’s new five-year plan will create opportunities for Swedish companies that o!er solutions for the environment.

uring the 2008 Beijing Olym-pic Games, the air in Beijing improved radically but it was too good to last. #e veil of

smog lifted from Beijing was back just a year later.

Beijing spent more than US$10 billion to clean up its polluted air before the Ol-ympics. According to a study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research the government managed to improve air quality by 30 per cent during the games, compared to year-earlier readings. But a year after the games, about 60 per cent of those gains had evaporated.

Until mid-January this year, the city authorities were only releasing information using the PM10 index, which measures slightly larger particles in the air.

Beijing city authorities had, however, been measuring pollutants smaller than 2.5 micrometres (PM2.5) for "ve years, but without releasing the "gures. PM2.5 pol-lutants are considered the most hazardous particles and are primarily responsible for decreased lung capacity, shortness of breath, coughing and eye and nose irritation.

In the meantime, the US embassy in Beijing had been collecting and publish-

ing PM2.5 information for some time. Its numbers often suggested the city’s air was more polluted than the local government "gures showed.

#is pressure from the Americans forced local o%cials in Beijing to announce that they would start publishing the PM2.5 data on the website of the Beijing Municipal Environmental Monitoring Centre.

This also put pressure on the Hong Kong government, where air-quality monitoring is based on 24-year old criteria. A week after Bei-jing pledged to measure pollutants smaller than PM2.5, the environment minister said that Hong Kong would do the same later in March.

“#e mainland is much more aggressive than Hong Kong in dealing with setting air quality objectives,” said former lawmaker Christine Loh Kung-wai of the Hong Kong-based think-tank the Civic Exchange.

“#is has happened because Hong Kong’s senior o%cials lack the understanding and courage to set demanding [objectives]

and to use them as a tool to address the epidemics of public health impacts,” she said to the South China Morning Post.

It is a clear fact that air pollution kills people. China’s Ministry of Science and Technology has admitted that air pollution kills 50,000 new-born babies per year.

Figures from the University of Hong Kong’s Hedley Environmental Index says that more than 7,200 local deaths had been

connected to air pollution in the seven years Chief Executive Donald Tsang has been at the city’s helm.

It is "gures such as these that are leading to growing environmental awareness among the public, both in China and in Hong Kong.

Sweden is a pioneering country when it comes to sustainability. As early as the 1960’s, Sweden recognised that the rapid loss of natural resources had to be confronted. It took a leading role in organising the "rst UN conference on the environment, which was held in Stockholm in 1972.

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On a green boatto China

7,500The number of deaths in Hong Kong connected to air pollution

since 2005, according to figures by the Hedley Environmental Index.

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The roadside pollution levels in Hong Kong were the worst ever in 2011, according to the Environmental Protection Department.

Readings at three roadside monitoring sta-tions showed that pollution levels were above the 100 mark more than 20 per cent of the time. This was 10 times worse than in 2005, when very high readings were recorded only 2 per cent of the time.

A reading over 100 means at least one pol-lutant fails the air quality objectives.

Environmentalists, such as Clear the Air – a local anti-pollution organisation – are calling for the immediate introduction of new air-quality objectives, claiming that the government had deliberately delayed their introduction to ease the way for major infrastructure projects.

The department blamed the figures on unfavourable weather conditions, worsening background pollution and the ageing vehicles on the streets.

“Transport is necessary in a society. You need to move goods and you need to move people, but you also need to focus on sus-tainability,” says Nick Leach, regional director for vehicle sales support based at Scania in Hong Kong.

Leach has worked at Scania for 36 years in the UK, South Africa, Australia, Sweden, and the last five years in Hong Kong. Over the years, he has built up a high level of knowl-edge and expertise in sustainability issues.

“We want to make sure that the decision-makers who decide on our future are well

informed. We are convinced that Scania can help to improve the environment in Hong Kong and then it is our duty to assist the govern-ment to keep up to date with the latest information in our field of industry,” he says.

New private cars pollute very little today in Hong Kong but the problem is that they clog up the roads, which become jammed with old heavy-duty diesel-driven trucks and buses.

European emission standards define the ac-ceptable limits for exhaust emissions of new vehicles. The legislation in Hong Kong obliges new trucks and buses to meet the Euro 4 standard, but a majority of diesel vehicles in Hong Kong only meet the Euro 1, 2 and 3 standards that were introduced 10-20 years ago, while several are even pre-Euro standard.

Over 90 per cent of Scania’s new trucks and buses that have been sold in Hong Kong in the past two years meet the tougher Euro 5 standard. Viewing the company’s website on 5 March, 2012, Scania states that it has so far delivered 1,075 Euro 5 vehicles to Hong Kong, which has reduced the emissions of nitro-gen oxides (NOx) by 173 tonnes compared with vehicles meeting the legislated Euro 4 standard. Nitrogen oxide is a major pollutant in Hong Kong and highly responsible for smog.

“Euro 5, and especially the newer Euro 6, are coming very close to zero emissions of lo-cal pollutants. The problem is not the new ve-hicles; the problem is getting the old ones o" the roads. If all the vehicles on Hong Kong’s roads were Euro 5 or Euro 6 nobody would be discussing roadside pollution,” says Leach.

Electric vehicles are not the solutionTrucks and buses meeting the Euro 5 or Euro 6 emission standards using sustainable biofuels are much better alternatives for the envi-ronment than electric vehicles as long as the electricity comes from fossil-energy sources, according to Nick Leach, an environmental expert at Scania Hong Kong.

Globally, more land

is used for golf courses than for biofuels today.”Nick Leach, Scania

Electric vehicles have been promoted by the Hong Kong government as a solution for the future. In September, o!cials said they were aiming for 30 per cent of privately owned cars in the city to be hybrid or electric by 2020. The government is encouraging busi-nesses and car-park owners to install at least 2,000 charging stations by 2013, setting up an electric infrastructure before the vehicles hit the roads in significant numbers.

“The man on the street understandably perceives electric vehicles to be clean. But it is a myth if the electricity comes from fossil-energy generation with high emissions of pollutants, which it currently does in Hong Kong. Electric vehicles are only good for the environment if the electricity comes from clean, sustainable sources, which may be the case in the future, but not yet” says Leach.

Then there is the battery issue. Electric bus batteries weigh two to three tonnes today, which means that the bus gets much heavier and can carry fewer passengers. They are also extremely expensive, and what to do with used bat-teries in an environmentally acceptable way has yet to be established.

Leach believes strongly in biofuels. The currently available varieties are ethanol, biomethane and biodiesel. He sees future production coming from sugar cane, solid and liquid waste, and from cellulose.

There is a huge potential to increase pro-duction of biofuels in Africa and Latin America, where there are large areas of rain-fed arable land and the investment costs are low.

“Globally, more land is used for golf courses than for biofuels today,” says Leach.

Thirteen countries around the world, including Sweden, England, France, Italy, Thailand and Australia, are trialling ethanol as fuel for their buses. Second-generation ethanol from waste and cellulose does not require any dedicated land, and supplies will increase in the future. In the meantime sugar cane is a very good high-yield alternative when land is available. This is the situation in Brazil, where ethanol has been used as a vehicle fuel for many years. However, sugar cane plantations only occupy around 1 per cent of the country’s arable land.

Sweden’s capital, Stockholm, is a role mod-el for operating sustainable public transport, according to Leach. The city’s bus operator, Storstockholms Lokaltrafik (Greater Stock-

holm Local Transport, SL), has been running buses on ethanol, and then other biofuels, since 1989, which has had a great ef-fect on air quality and lowered the emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) by an estimated 80,000 tonnes per year. An average city bus operating on fossil fuel emits some 90 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year.

SL has also invested heavily in new biomethane-powered buses. The biometh-ane that refuels the buses comes through a direct line from a nearby sewage treatment plant. The project is a good example of the switch from fossil fuel to biofuels, where the environmental and financial e"ects benefit both transport providers and travellers.

Leach’s conclusion is that trucks and buses meeting the Euro 5 or Euro 6 emission stand-ards, and ideally using sustainable biofuels, are much better alternatives for the environ-ment than electric vehicles, as long as the electricity comes from fossil-energy sources.

During the oil crises of the 1970s and 1980s, tremendous e!orts were made to "nd new sources of energy, create new ways to in-sulate buildings and develop automatic energy-saving systems.

Since 1970, the dependence on oil for heat-ing and electricity production in Sweden has gone down by 90 per cent. From 1990-2006, Swedish carbon dioxide emissions fell 9 per cent, while at the same time the gross national product (GNP) increased by 44 per cent. #ese are statis-tics that prove that sustainable thinking can make

Nick Leach of Scania wants to see more diesel vehicles meeting the Euro 5 and Euro 6 emission standards on the roads of Hong Kong.

173The reduction in tonnes of hazardous nitrogen

oxides emissions in Hong Kong due to

Scania’s deliveries of 1,075 Euro 5 vehicles.

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a crucial di!erence in decoupling environmental issues from economic performance.

#e result in Sweden is a huge number of companies working with various types of environmental solutions – and many of them have established themselves in China and Hong Kong.

Envac is such a company. It is the global market leader in automated vacuum-waste col-lection and the inventor of the vacuum system. Envac has installed many of its systems in China and Hong Kong, and is particularly targeting the

development of eco-cities all around China.“#e agenda for eco-cities is slightly dif-

ferent from normal development since it has a clear focus on green technology. It helps us to be part of the overall infrastructure right from the beginning,” says Tan Chin Tiong, vice president for the Asia-Paci"c region (see separate article).

Another Swedish company making inroads in China is Environmental Air of Sweden (EAS), which is marketing air cleaners for o%ces, hospitals, schools, hotels,

entertainment centres, private homes, etc.“We di!er from most other suppliers since

our machines can eliminate the contamina-tion even from the small and most hazardous, PM2.5, particles,” says Göran Hertzberg, man-aging director of Environmental Air of Sweden (EAS) (see separate article).

“Environmental solutions is one area where Swedish companies really can compete,” says Anita Jonsson, head of the Swedish Sus-tainable Business programme in China at the

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Polluted smog surrounds the Forbidden City in Beijing.


Envac is the global market leader in auto-mated vacuum waste collection and the inventor of the vacuum system. Envac has 35 o!ces in 20 countries and has made around 30 installations in China and Hong Kong in eco-cities, residential areas, o!ces, hospi-tals, catering centres at airports and railway stations, etc.

Prestigious projects include the Beijing 301 Hospital, the Beijing World Financial Centre, eco-cities in Tianjin and Wuxi, the China South-ern Airlines kitchen at the Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport and the Hong Kong Science Park.

There is a growing labour shortage for manual handling of waste collection. Today, a majority of the collectors are old – young people in general don’t want to work with rub-bish. Modern cities in Asia are dependent on foreign or migrant workers to do the job.

“In Singapore, for example, most collectors are non-Singa-poreans. The alternative is automation, which at the same time also improves the environ-ment. Envac’s technology is an obvious choice for a sustainable future,” says Tan Chin Tiong, vice president for the Asia-Pacific region.

There is also a hygienic aspect. Bacteria spread much faster when waste is handled manually, which could be disastrous for exam-ple in hospitals and large kitchens.

Envac has much focus on the develop-ment of eco-cities in China and is actively involved in both the Tianjin and Wuxi big eco-

cities projects as well as in an eco-town in Guangzhou.

“The agenda for eco-cities is slightly di"er-ent from normal development since it has a clear focus on green technology. It helps us to be part of the overall infrastructure right from the beginning,” says Tan.

“Eco-cities are also government-driven, of-ten in cooperation with other countries such as Singapore in Tianjin and Sweden in Wuxi, so there is a strong political will. If you leave it all up to the private sector to decide, green solu-

tions are often not considered as very urgent and important,” he says.

Tan is very happy about the activities carried out by the Swedish embassy’s Centre for Environmental Technology (CENTEC) and the Swedish Trade Council (STC).

“They do a wonderful job and it helps us a lot. China looks very much up to Sweden

when it comes to environmental technology, and when these organisations say something it is regarded as much more powerful than if it came from a private company,” says Tan.

Envac’s biggest market in Asia is South Korea. There, many local governments have implemented bold and visionary regulations that say that every residential development with more than 500 apartments must have an automated waste collection system.

“We have many installations in South Korea and some of them are even more advanced than the systems we have in Europe,” says Tan.

Envac is focusing on eco-citiesEnvac’s automated vacuum waste collection system has been installed in many projects in China and Hong Kong. “It is an obvious choice for a sustainable future,” says Tan Chin Tiong, vice president for Asia-Pacific.

Swedish Trade Council (STC) in Shang-hai. “China is very impressed by what Sweden has achieved in this "eld. About half of all the technical visits to Sweden come from China.”

Swedish Sustainable Business is a project to develop sustainable business for Swedish-Chinese trade. It focuses on Swedish companies doing business in China and their Chinese suppliers and partners. #e programme is managed by the STC in close cooperation with the Consulate General of Sweden in Shanghai and Shanghai International Sourcing Promotion Centre.

But when Jonsson opened STC’s o%ce in Shanghai in 1996 there was not much environmental awareness in China.

“At that time, everybody talked about growth. Today, China realises that they have to protect the environment in order to achieve growth,” says Jonsson.

About 10 per cent of Sweden’s export to China are “green” or so called “clean-tech” solutions.

Over the past few years, the STC has arranged 18 clean-tech workshops and exhibitions, all with fruitful results.

At a recent event, at the Nanjing Environmental Exhibition in November 2011, Sweden had the largest pavilion, with 25 exhibitors and 70 participants, presenting advanced Swedish technolo-gies in air and water pollution, waste handling and urban construction, and sharing experience with Chinese counter-parts. It was a joint e!ort by the STC, the Swedish Consulate General in Shanghai and the IMT, a body in Sweden that stands for the International Environmen-tal Technology Cooperation.

“In the Nanjing exhibition, Sweden had the largest pavilion. I don’t think it has ever happened at a trade show in China,” says Jonsson.

500Many municipalities in

South Korea have made it mandatory that every residential building with

more than 500 flats must have an automated waste-collection system.

The agenda for eco-cities is slightly di"erent from

normal development since it has a clear focus is on green technology.”Tan Chin Tiong, Envac

(Right) Envac’s waste collection system for large catering kitchens e"ciently removes all types of organic and solid waste in the meal preparation and dishwashing areas. PH

OTO

: Env

acPH

OTO

: STC

(Above) Sweden presented advanced technologies at the

Nanjing Environmental Exhibition in

November 2011.

Envac’s system is used in many residential areas around the world.

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The Chinese are impressed by Swedish environmental technology.


Outdoor air pollution is a"ected by many di"erent factors and it takes time to make substantial improvements. To clean the air indoors, however, is a totally di"erent thing.

“Indoors it is possible to get a better environment very quickly at a decent cost,” says Göran Hertzberg, managing director of Environmental Air of Sweden (EAS), a developer of highly e!cient air cleaning systems that are designed and produced in Sweden.

EAS has been in China for 10 years, delivering its air cleaners to corporate o!ces, hospitals, schools, hotels, enter-tainment centres and private homes.

“We di"er from most other suppliers since our machines can eliminate contami-nation from even the smallest and most hazardous PM2.5 particles,” says Hertzberg.

EAS specialises in high e!ciency filters and bipolar ionisation technology. Its systems eliminate all kinds of particles – dust and hair, cigarette smoke, bacteria and organic gases – and it also reduces bad odours.

“A large o!ce of 4,000 square metres was tested by an institute in China. The test showed a reduction of approximately 80 per cent of the pollutants when EAS air cleaners were being used,” says Hertzberg.

The core of all EAS equipment is a bipolar ionisation process, which cleans the air using the same natural processes

nature uses through thunderstorms. Charged air is spread into the room to tar-get the contamination source (bacteria, viruses and mould), also eliminating the contamination in the air that has not yet passed through the air cleaner.

In 2005, the Chinese State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) undertook an extensive laboratory testing of the EAS products, as well as its management quality system, and EAS is today one of a select few companies worldwide that have been awarded the SFDA approval.

“This certificate is evidence of the quality of our equipment and gives us the right to sell our equipment to all Chinese hospitals. Besides, we also assign inde-pendent firms do surveys to measure the air before and after use of our products,” says Hertzberg.

Recently, a test institute in Beijing tested PM2.5 levels in a residential apart-ment. Before an EAS air cleaner was installed the level was 345 micrograms per cubic-metre, which is very high – 250 micrograms per cubic-metre is normally considered as very unhealthy. Two days later, when the EAS air cleaner had been used for 24 hours, the level was down to 13 micrograms per cubic metre.

“It is a very good result, which shows it is possible to combat even the most hazardous particles in the air indoors,” says Hertzberg.

EAS is cleaning the airAir cleaners from Environmental Air of Sweden (EAS) show very good result in tests when it comes to eliminating even the small and dangerous PM2.5 particles.

It is possible to combat

even the most hazardous particles in the air indoors.”Göran Hertzberg, EAS

#e STC has signed a cooperation agreement with the city of Wuxi to de-velop cooperation in sustainable business. One of the areas for cooperation is the Taihu New City, where the Sino-Swedish Low Carbon Eco City will be constructed in cooperation with Sweden. Swedish Sus-tainable Business has arranged environ-mental seminars and business delegations to Wuxi to support this project.

The timing for companies that are o!ering environmental solutions for the China market is very good because China is now giving high investment priority to such areas.

In its 12th "ve-year plan, the Chinese government has given priority to develop seven emerging industries: energy ef-"ciency and environmental protection, renewable energy, new energy cars, smart materials, high technology equipment,

At that time [in

1996], everybody talked about growth. Today, China realises that they have to protect the environment in order to achieve growth.”Anita Jonsson, the Swedish Trade Council

16 DRAGONNEWS

Work Space sells Swedish office furniture brand Kinnarps in China and through out South East Asia. Please contact us to arrange an introduction meeting at your

office or to schedule a visit to our showroom in Beijing.

INTERIOR SOLUTIONS

WORKSPACE

For more information visit our websites: www.work-space.cn and www.kinnarps.comRoom 1501, Tower 1, Xiaoyun Center, No. 15 Xiaguangli, Chaoyang District, Beijing Tel: +86 10 8446 3162 Fax: +86 10 8446 3163

China’s rapid growth has come at the ex-pense of the country’s air, land and water, much of it already degraded by decades of economic planning that emphasised the development of heavy industry in urban areas.

In a short period of time, China has grown to become the world’s largest greenhouse-gas emitter. More than half of the global increase of greenhouse-gas emissions comes from China.

Ill-planned hydrological engineering projects, which interrupt the natural flow of rivers, and conversion of wetlands for agriculture and unsuitable construction and infrastructure projects in the flood plain have destroyed ecosystems.

Decades of waste poured from fac-tories and cities into China’s rivers have turned many of them into open sewers. About 40 per cent of the water in the country’s river systems has a quality in-dex of 3 or worse, meaning that it is unfit for human consumption, according to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

China has only one-fifth as much water per capita as the US. But while southern China is relatively wet, the north, home to about half of China’s population, is an immense, parched re-gion that now threatens to become the world’s biggest desert.

Respiratory and heart diseases related to air pollution are the leading cause of death in China. Air pollution is the estimated cause of up to 1.75 million premature deaths each year.

China’s polluted environment is largely a result of the country’s rapid development and the consequent increase in energy consumption, which is primarily provided by coal-fired power plants. While some progress has been made in improving energy e!ciency and carbon dioxide emissions reduction, almost 70 per cent of the energy production is still depend-ent on coal.

To construct a conventional coal-fired power plant is the fastest way to increase electricity supply, but China realises it has to reduce its coal dependency. That said, China’s demand for energy is not decreas-ing, so the government is now encourag-ing the development of cleaner energy, since the country has great potential in hydroelectric power, solar energy, wind power and bio-energy.

China’s government has set up ambi-tious renewable energy goals and plans to nearly double the proportion of renewa-bles in its overall energy mix – from 8 per cent in 2006 to 11.4 per cent when the

current 12th five-year plan ends in 2015, and to 15 per cent in 2020.

History tells us that in all major de-veloped countries heavy pollution has followed as a result of industrial develop-ment and it wasn’t until the economies in, for example, Britain, the US and Japan matured and the countries became rich that their leaders started to worry about the environmental damage that had occurred. China’s speed of development has no real parallel in history, and even if there has been a rapid increase of wealth a huge part of the population is still poor.

For China’s government, the main priori-ties are economic development, poverty alleviation and social stability. All this will require further growth, which is fuelled by energy, and while there is no denying China’s need for energy for development, the question is how growth can be gener-ated in a more energy-e!cient manner – and increasingly based on renewable energy sources.

Still dirty – but China is getting greenerChina’s rapid development has caused huge environmental problems, but the government is now encouraging the develop-ment of cleaner energy sources.

next-generation IT systems and biotechnol-ogy. #e government will gradually invest a total of CNY10,000 billion in these strategi-cally important industries.

#e STC has an assignment from the Swedish government to promote clean-tech in Greater China during 2012. Five work-shops will be held on waste management in Nanjing and Taipei in May, infrastructure in

bound up in seriously grappling with sustain-ability issues: the country accounted for half the entire world’s construction activities in 2010. Over the next 30 years, China’s massive planned urbanisation project will add hun-dreds of millions more city dwellers, so it must continually innovate low-carbon and resource-e%cient urban planning and development. b

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Still, almost 70 per cent of China’s energy production is dependent on coal.

Beijing and Chengdu in September, and energy-e%cient buildings in Shanghai in October.

#e Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong is also arranging a Green Business Seminar in Hong Kong in col-laboration with several other partners, including the STC (see page 42).

China recognises that its future is

18 DRAGONNEWS

TEXT: Jan Hökerberg, Bamboo, [email protected]

Six years ago, former policeman Lars-Åke Severin quit his job in Sweden, went to China and started the private security consultancy PSU. Today, the company has 15 employees and two o"ces.

he was responsible for the security of the Crown Princess Viktoria from when she was 13 to 18 years old.

“It was a fascinating job that had a big impact on me. Both me and my team regarded it as a great responsibility to have such an important support function for such a young person,” says Severin.

In 1995, he left the security police to return to the public side of the job as a detec-tive in Malmö, where among other things he battled organised crime. He stayed on for "ve years, but in 2000 he left his 16-years-long police and military career.

“I was asking myself whether, when I was older, I would regret that I had not done anything else with my life. I had developed a

model for threat-level analysis, but there was no interest to develop that among the police authorities.”

So Severin started his own company called Loke Analys. After "ve years, he ac-cepted an investor but

the investor had other views on what models they should use and Severin sold his share of the company to him in 2005.

“At that time, I had been to China on cli-ent assignments and I knew that it should be possible to get a private security consultancy licence in China,” he says.

In 2006, he went to China and founded PSU (China) Consulting Co, Ltd and later on, in Sweden, Personsäkerhetsutveckling AB. #e acronym PSU stands for personal security development in Swedish. It was the "rst foreign company of its kind in China, and Severin established an o%ce in Beijing,

hina is developing very fast, but doing business in China is still not like doing busi-ness back home. #e private

security consultancy PSU China has over the past nine months worked with at least three cases where local suppliers have threatened the foreign-owned company’s top management.

“Most times they demand money, but then you have to resist. If you pay directly to get out of the situation, then you just show other suppliers that they can do ex-actly the same thing. You should never pay someone who threatens you,” says Lars-Åke Severin, chief executive o%cer (CEO) and founder of PSU.

“If, for example, a supplier goes to his customer’s o%ce, forces himself in and threatens the manage-ment, then one prob-lem is that the local police normally do not interfere because they think it is a business-related con$ict. #at is where we can come in and help,” he says.

Severin was born in 1962 in the southern Swedish city of Malmö, where he also grew up. When he was 18, he joined the Swedish army in Umeå in northern Sweden for his military education and continued to work there as an intelligence o%cer.

Four years as a military man quali"ed him to join the police forces in 1984, and for seven years he served both as a uniformed police and a mounted policeman in Malmö. In 1991, he moved to the Swedish Security Police (“Säpo” in Swedish) and its depart-ment for personal protection. For "ve years

Cwhere he had most of his network.

“When I came to China, there was no one who could o!er Scandinavian compa-nies this type of service. I was lucky to get a couple of big assignments at the begin-ning, which gave us a kick-start and helped us to grow.”

Today, PSU China employs 15 people

You should never pay

someone who threatens you.”

Helping companies to be more secure

13 to 18The age of Crown Princess Viktoria when Lars-Åke Severin and his team were re-

sponsible for her personal security.

Westerners tend to trust everyone; we are too simple-minded.”

in two o%ces – Beijing and Shanghai – and plans to grow to 20 by year-end. #ree em-ployees are Swedish, and the rest are Chinese. All sta! members have a background in the security business.

Severin, who has two daughters, 24 and 22 years old, who are both studying at Lund University in Sweden, plans to stay long term in China, which he also recommends his cus-tomers do.

“To succeed in China, you have to have a long-term perspective. You cannot come here as an expat and stay two years and then leave and let another person take over. If you want to succeed, you should stay for at least "ve or six years.”

PSU China supports its clients in three business areas: preventive, investigative and protective security. Carrying out investiga-

tions and on-site security support are the main businesses, but the preventive area is also growing.

“A typical assignment is that a customer asks us to investigate a company in a due diligence process. We have to look behind the o%cial information to "nd out who is the real owner, whether there are connections to a local government or whether there are own-ership links to other members of the o%cial owner’s family,” says Severin.

“In the US and other developed countries you can often say ‘what you see is what you get’. In China, however, it is often more like ‘what you see is not what you get’”, he adds.

Risk management in China compared to Sweden is very di!erent, according to Severin. In the West, a contract is seen as a legal binding document. In China, it is

more regarded as a road map, something that can guide you but that you really don’t have to follow.

“A Chinese person trusts family and closest friends, but not many others. West-erners tend to trust everyone; we are too simple-minded.”

Most Chinese employees in foreign-owned companies are dedicated, hard-work-ing and loyal. But in a basket of fresh fruit there are often some rotten apples.

#ere are classic stories about foreign-owned companies being subject to fraud, with the local production manager bringing the tools to a nearby factory, owned by him or his family, to manufacture similar prod-ucts in the evenings.

“#ese things still happen, even if it was more common 10 years ago,” says Severin.

He says with a smile that foreign manag-ers should learn from the Silk Market in Beijing to strengthen their knowledge about China and to avoid allowing themselves to be fooled: “Spend a month there and you will really learn how to build relations, how to negotiate and how to make the "nal pur-chase ...” b

Lars-Åke Severin (left) got his military education in northern Sweden.


ary Huynh is of Chinese and Viet-namese origins, but was born and brought up in Sweden. She has also lived in London and Paris,

and since 2007 she has been based in Shanghai. Huynh’s "rst collection of leather bags

came out about two years ago. Today her bags are carried by women all around the world, from Scandinavia to South America and even South Africa. Many are sold through her web-site, but also at three Göte Göta Scandinavian Designers shops in Shanghai. She has been interviewed by publications such as !at’s Shanghai, Shanghai Talk, Time Out Shanghai, and was featured as the centrefold of City Weekend as the March issue’s “fashionista”.

Today, stores, magazines, online shops and buyers are lining up to sell her designs. But with a clear vision of her brand, which is called Designed by MaryH, and with an

M

It is an exclusive brand and I don’t aim for mass production.”

Dedicated follower of fashionTEXT: Torun Öhman, [email protected] PHOTO: Designed by MaryH

Mary Huynh started to market her collection of leather bags two years ago in Shanghai. Now stores are lining up to sell her designs.

Name: Mary HuynhAge: 29Company: Designed by MaryH, www.designedbymaryh.com Location: ShanghaiBest about Shanghai: The energy of the cityWorst about Shanghai: Dust and pollutionSecret favourite spot: Huashan ParkBest gift to give friends back home: Chinese tea, art and paintings

Mary Huynh in brief

eye to integrity, she is careful about selecting her partners.

“I always feel so surprised and $attered when stores or agents have found me and want to sell my bags. I’m just doing what I really love! #e bags are handmade and I only make about 10 to 50 of each design. It is an exclusive brand and I don’t aim for mass production. I want to have control over my stock. For me, it is so

10 to 50The number of bags in which each design

is produced.

I always feel so surprised and flattered when stores or agents

want to sell my bags.”

much more important that it’s the right store rather than several dif-ferent stores.”

The concept of Designed by MaryH is to create leather

bags that can be used in three ways: as clutch, shoulder and cross-body bags. She says that the design is Nordic – clean lines, minimalist and clever. She adds that her choices of bright colours also make the designs a fusion of her

Swedish side, her Chinese heritage and living around the world.

“Home in Sweden is Helsingborg. But before I came to Shanghai I lived and studied "rst in London and then Paris. #ere I also worked for Louis Vuitton and Longchamp in sales and marketing. I have always been very interested in design and that experience gave me an insight into the world of design, which is very useful now.”

So far, Huynh’s most unexpected expres-sion of interest has come from an agent in South Africa.

“She found and contacted me through my website. We met and it was a good match, so she brought a batch of bags to South Africa. #ey were much appreciated and the colourful style really works there. Now there is another batch on its way and she will show my bags in an upcoming exhibition. I’m really interested to hear more feedback!”

On the question of what Huynh thinks she will be doing in 10 years, she smiles and says: “I have a dream of creating ‘#e Yellow Mansion’. My last name in Chinese is Huang, which means yellow. I want a house that I can paint yellow and "ll it with things that make a special experience. You will be able to see and buy my designs, but it will also be "lled with other things like a workshop, o%ce and a café where you can have a MaryH cupcake. I will have my own stores around the world. And

I like warm weather, so I might have moved somewhere warmer, Vietnam perhaps.”

At the moment, Huynh is designing her "rst unisex collection and she has been ap-proached by a famous magazine that wants to sell her bags in their online shop. She has still not decided whether it is the right forum for her, as she also has several other stores lined up.

Keep your eyes open. #ere is a good chance that you will be seeing a lot more of Designed by MaryH. b


The jazz singer

The acclaimed Swedish jazz singer

and songwriter Christina Gustafsson

recently visited Hong Kong for six

concerts arranged by the Hong Kong-

based bass guitarist Rickard Malmsten.

TEXT: Jan Hökerberg, [email protected]

From Sweden with jazz

Christina Gustafsson together with Jack Greminger on drums and Rickard Malmsten on bass during a recent concert in Hong Kong.

he small village of Värmskog in the Swedish province of Värmland is famous for being the birthplace of Lars Magnus

Ericsson, the founder of the telecommunica-tions company Ericsson, in 1846. More lately, the village has become known for being the place where two of Swe-den’s most acclaimed jazz vocalists, the sisters Rigmor and Christina Gustafsson, were born and grew up.

In February, Christina Gustafs-son visited Hong Kong for six performances together with her two regular guitarists Erik Söderlind and Max Schultz. #ey were joined by local musicians Rickard Malmsten on bass and Jack Greminger on drums. #e visit was organised by Malmsten, who lives in Hong Kong, where he is a musician and, among other things, is arranging concerts (see separate article).

T

In New York, I started

to compose, since the music school demanded one new song per week …”

When people

go to jazz clubs here [in Hong Kong], they come to listen; the music is not background.”

13The age at which

Christina Gus-tafsson started

to sing in a band.

Full-time musician and composer Rickard Malmsten, 38, has been living abroad most of his grown-up life. Since 2002, he and his family have been based in Hong Kong, where he regularly performs at all the city’s major jazz venues.

“I left the city of Landskrona in southern Sweden at the age of 17 to study music in Los Angeles. For 20 years I have been living in five continents – Europe, North America, Latin America, Australia and Asia,” he says.

Rickard started to play drums at the age of seven and switched to bass guitar at 13. Over the years he has played with a remark-able number of big artists – Larry Coryell, Roy Hargrove, Bob Moses, to name just a few.

In Hong Kong, Malmsten is also arrang-

ing concerts with Swedish musicians. These include trombonist and singer Nils Landgren, Rigmor and Christina Gustafsson, pianist Maria Kvist and guitarist Ulf Wakenius.

“I get many requests from Swedish musi-cians to come here, so it is almost a half-time job to bring them over,” he says.

Malmsten has many irons in the fire. He works for a record company called Naxos and has also been training Hong Kong’s boxing team. One of his brothers used to box for the Swedish national team and Malmsten also tried out the sport.

“But if you want to be a boxer, you have to love to beat people and take being beaten. I wasn’t fond of either, so that is why I prefer training boxers rather than boxing myself.”

Sweden’s jazz ambassador in Hong KongGustafsson was born in 1970 and grew up on a small farm. Her four years elder sister Rigmor got a guitar at an early age and they both grew up playing and singing. In school, she was inspired by a music teacher who intro-duced the students to jazz music. #e teacher

helped them to form a band in which both Christina and Rigmor sang. #e band participated in contests not only in Sweden, but also in Germany and France.

“I did this for "ve years from when I was 13. It was a very valu-able experience for me since I am a bit shy,” says Gustafsson.

After studies in classical guitar and song at an upper second-

ary music school in the provincial capital of Karlstad, she moved in 1989 to Stockholm to perform and continue her studies while "nancing them by working at hot dog stands and cleaning hotel rooms.

Within a few years, she was performing with many successful Swedish jazz stars, like Magnus Lind-gren, Ronnie Gardiner, Bernt Rosengren, Karl-Mar-tin Almquist, Jojje Wadenius and Rune Gustafsson.

“However, the jazz scene in Sweden is rather limited and I got a kind of creativity crisis. #ere-fore, in 1994, I decided to move to New York to study at a famous music school, the Mannes Col-lege of Music. It was two very inspiring years and I got my creativity back! In New York, I also started to compose, since the music school demanded one new song per week …”

Back in Stockholm, she enrolled in the voice teacher programme at the Royal College of Music and formed her own quintet.

Gustafsson has established herself as a singer and songwriter and has released two albums, Moments Free in 2007 and My Move in 2009. #e majority of the songs on the albums are her own.

“But I have found it more and more di%cult sometimes to write the lyrics and have therefore started to work with a couple of lyricists,” she says.

She also likes to sing jazz standards, such as “Stormy Weather”, for which she does her own arrangements and has also done her own versions of John Sebastian’s “Daydream” and James Taylor’s “Your Smiling Face”.

Gustafsson manages to make ends meet by tour-ing Sweden’s jazz clubs and performing at corporate events. She is also a part-time voice teacher at the Södra Latin upper secondary school in Stockholm.

Occasionally, she also goes abroad to perform and has been in Manila with Sveriges Jazzband, a Swedish band that plays more mainstream, happy swing jazz, and in Kuala Lumpur. She will perform in Bangkok in April this year. #e visit to Hong Kong was her "rst.

“Hong Kong reminds me of New York. When people go to jazz clubs here they come to listen; the music is not background,” she says.

In Sweden, she is working on her third album, which will be released later this year, and spends time with her daughter. “She is "ve years old and has already started to sing …” b


“In which industries will China win?” was the title of the joint chamber luncheon at the Foreign Correspondents Club (FCC) in Hong Kong on 1 March. The speaker was Michael Enright, a professor at the University of Hong Kong and director of the strategic consulting firm Enright Scott & Associates.

Enright pointed out that in some indus-tries, such as PCs, home appliances and consumer electronics, it looks as if China has already won. For example, two-thirds of all notebooks in the world are manufac-tured in Suzhou, and for some appliances and other electronic products almost 100 per cent are produced in China.

However, a closer view shows that apart from manufacturing, most activities – such as research and development, industrial

Hong Kong

Winning with China

On 15 February, Mercuri International, which is the world’s largest sales performance and training consultancy, held a breakfast seminar at Mannheimer Swartling in Hong Kong. Mer-curi was represented by CEO Ola Strömberg, marketing director Elisabeth Kark Ringmar and the Asia managing director Frank Herbertz.

Strömberg presented trends that have fun-damentally changed the process of sales and the role of the sales representative. In the lat-ter part of 20th century, the sales representa-tive’s role went from being a provider of an ever increasing demand of goods via “the listener” to “the customer-is-king” approach. Today, the purchasing path has changed totally. When customers have access to all information they

New trends in sales

Hong Kong tax treaties and the consequences for Swedish and Nor-wegian companies was the topic for a breakfast seminar hosted by the Swedish chamber on 28 February, with Nigel Hobler, partner at KPMG and Gunnar Mansfeld, CEO of Troy Solutions, as guest speakers.

There is a global trend among tax authorities to become more inte-grated and sophisticated in their collection of tax income. This trend started in the aftermath of the events of 9/11.

A new vigour to go after funding for terror organisations also gave way to a new view on “dodgy” tax jurisdictions and aggressive tax planning. The OECD’s report on “harmful tax practices” and the global agreements that followed is a good example of the changed attitude.

Many former “tax havens” and bank secrecy jurisdictions (Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Luxembourg, etc) have changed their policies and are now open for a global cooperation also on tax related matters. This is evident from the number of Double Taxation Agreements (DTAs) and Exchange of Information (EOI) agreements that these countries are now actively trying to conclude. The Hong Kong government has also adopted this strategy to ensure a good standing with all OECD countries.

For Swedes and Swedish companies in Hong Kong that means the tax environment is getting more complex. Old “truths” might not necessar-ily be true any longer and the playing field will be more level with no more “free riders”.

We also need to learn how to adopt and thrive in a business world that is increasingly more inter-dependent, was the conclusion from the speakers.

Changed attitudes among tax authorities

Nigel Hobler of KPMG talked about a more complex tax environment.

possibly need to find and choose a product, service or supplier, the sales representative needs to take on a di"erent role.

There is no single sales model that is valid

Ola Strömberg (left) and Frank Herbertz talked about fundamental changes in the sales process.

design, supply chain management, marketing and branding – are still controlled by foreign-invested enterprises in China. In other words, China may be the production location, but non-Chinese companies are still the leaders.

However, Enright noted that Chinese com-panies are becoming a stronger competitive force by leveraging cost advantages, having a large home market, favourable government policies and political connections, and purchas-ing brands or technologies. This has already happened in railway equipment and is likely to happen in commercial aircraft, while in other industries, such as luxury consumer goods, there is little risk of foreign enterprises being beaten by Chinese competitors in the near to medium term.

Enright stated that foreign-owned compa-nies need to view China from the inside-out rather than the outside-in. They should assess

Foreign-owned companies should view China as a future global game-changer, said Michael Enright.

Michael Enright (left) with Sta!an Löfgren of the Swedish Chamber of Commerce, one of the organisers of the lunch event.

any longer. Sales representatives need to be flexible and adapt to the client and the situa-tion, just as in situational leadership. Ström-berg showed what these di"erent situations and roles are and what they mean for sales.

The fact is that there has been an explosion in value versus price, and the sales representa-tive needs to understand a lot more about the full picture and what value a product or service can bring to the customer. When infidelity is the norm, companies need to find new ways to build loyalty, be it through technology or financially, with contracts or by well managed relation-ships. And as the private and o!cial spheres are merging, and customers enjoy much more advanced communications and change their buying patterns, the sales process of business-es need to get up to speed and adapt.

China’s importance as a producer and market, the capabilities of Chinese firms, and the Chinese government’s commitment to supporting Chinese enterprises in their industries. They should view China not as merely one market but as a future global game-changer.

According to Enright, “Foreign companies can still win in China and globally if they understand the potential advantages that China has in its industries and exploit them before Chinese competitors leverage them into international markets.”

He also recommended that foreign-owned companies take advantage of the opportunities to become suppliers, advis-ers, partners, customers, and so on, for growing Chinese enterprises.

“Even if Chinese companies win, your company can also be winning,” said Enright.


Beijing & Shanghai

A glimpse of the year ahead

Emma Persson and Jimmy Sandell talks

about consumer trends in 2012.

The need for Swedish companies to obtain local currency is growing, yet lending and credit restric-tions remain a problem for lenders and borrowers.

At a morning seminar in Shanghai on 15 Feb-ruary, lawyers André Andersson and Mikael Lind-gren from Mannheimer Swartling shared their experience and o"ered advice when it comes to finding a financial partner. There are many pitfalls to be aware of when financing in China. For example, Chinese loan agreements often in-clude lender friendly and mandatory provisions such as needing the lender’s consent before mergers take place, or before obtaining financ-ing from other lenders. Other aspects need to be considered, such as the number of lenders and what e"ect that has on your relationship.

After the seminar, Andersson and Lindgren invited chamber members to have a discussion. Many Swedish companies dealing with financing issues were there to pose questions and get advice on best practices. The expertise in the room was further increased by the presence of the chamber’s banking members, who actively contributed to a very interesting discussion.

Many pitfalls when financing in China

On 17 January, the Swedish business intelligence firm United Minds visited the chamber in Beijing to give its members some insight into future consumer trends.

The year 2012 is the last of the Mayan calendar, predicted to bring the end of the world, said the speakers, senior consultant Emma Persson and senior analyst Jimmy Sandell.

But rather than preaching doomsday, they said there were great changes and opportunities in the year ahead. A truly urbanised global world has emerged and technological developments are more evident than ever before, with more people living connected, healthy and informed lives.

These driving forces, they said, are rendered manifest in the fol-lowing trends to watch out for:

New tribalism: The way our social circles organise our lives no matter where we are in the world, thanks to a world of social networks and selective software that gives us all a self-catered information experience.

Playful society: A world where work and play merge and the challenges, feedback, and the joy of games are applied to creation and productivity.

“Shareonomics”: Consumption geared towards access over own-ership, part of the shift towards new post-materialist values.

“Scienceology”: A rekindled faith in science in the wake of roman-ticising nature. We welcome technology into more spheres of our lives and expect products and services to be scientifically endorsed.

Starting out from macro and micro trends, United Minds o"ers theory and methods for trend analysis that remains relevant to business interests and grounded in consumer insights.

Mikael Lindgren (left) and André Andersson o!er advice when it comes to financing in China.

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HONG KONG ORDINARY MEMBERS >>>

Ashurst Hong Kong16/F, ICBC Tower, Citibank Plaza3 Garden Road, Central, Hong KongTel: +852 2846 8989Email: [email protected], [email protected]: www.ashurst.com

ActivitiesAshurst is a leading international law firm with 24 o!ces spanning the Asia-Pacific, Europe, North America and the Middle East. In Asia, we have o!ces in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Tokyo, Singapore, and Port Moresby as well as an associate o!ce in Jakarta. We assist local and international clients in M&A, equity capital markets, energy and natural resources, international finance, dispute resolution, and corporate and commercial.

Ashurst Hong Kong frequently acts on multi-jurisdictional M&A, private equity and international finance transactions. We also advise Asian clients on transactions in Australia, Europe and North America, and work with our Stockholm o!ce on investments into Sweden.

Chamber representativesRobert Ogilvy Watson, PartnerDaniel Öhvall, Senior Associate

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Elekta Limited16/F, The Hennessy, 256 Hennessy Road, Wan Chai, Hong KongTel: +852 2892 4353Email: [email protected]: www.elekta.hk

M2 Retail Solutions Asia LtdUnit 5, 7/F, Emperor Group Centre288 Hennessy Road, Wan ChaiHong KongTel: +852 2111 7083Email: [email protected]: www.m2retailsolutions.com

ActivitiesM2 Retail Solutions deliver improved profitability per square meter. We do this by increasing sales for our customers through enabling them to di"erentiate from competitors, optimize flows and entertain consumers; cut fixed costs through outsourcing; and through cost-e!cient sourcing and logistics services

Over the past 10 years, M2 Retail Solutions has estab-lished more than 2,000 stores, over 1,000 shop in shops and thousands of shop points (corners) in more than 70 countries for a number of high-profile brands. M2 started its operation in Asia in 2004 in order to come closer to the Chinese suppliers.

Chamber representativeMikael Svenungsson, CEO

Eastrunner International LtdUnit 1010, Miramar Tower132 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong KongTel: +852 2819 27170Email: [email protected]: www.eastrunner.com

ActivitiesEastrunner International Ltd o"ers professional business and engineering consulting services to companies entering China, such as China market entry, procurement services, establishing a manufacturing base in China, relocating your production facility to China, equity partners for your busi-ness and sourcing solutions. We are well versed with the business system, business culture and practice in China and as well as in Europe. We provide low-cost solutions to what most companies consider costly problems.

Chamber representativeJosef Widström, CEO

ActivitiesElekta is a human-care company pioneering significant in-novations and clinical solutions for treating cancer and brain disorders. The company develops sophisticated, state-of-the-art tools and treatment planning systems for radiation therapy, radio-surgery and brachytherapy, as well as work-flow enhancing software systems across the spectrum of cancer care. Elekta solutions in oncology and neurosurgery are used in over 6,000 hospitals worldwide. Elekta employs around 3,300 employees globally. The corporate headquar-ters is located in Stockholm, Sweden.

Chamber representativesPeter Thelin, Vice President QA & RA, Asia-Pacific Region Gabriella Lembke, E-Marketing Specialist, Asia-Pacific Region

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HONG KONG OVERSEAS MEMBERS >>>

HONG KONG INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS >>>

Johan NylanderTel: +852 9303 5166Email: [email protected]

Bright Potential Coaching ABHagabergsvägen 20SE-139 35 Värmdö, SwedenTel: +46 8 10 38 83Email: [email protected]: www.brightpotential.com

ActivitiesWe help individuals and corporations to unleash their hidden potential. We identify strengths within them that have not yet seen the light of day. We guide them through a change for the better and towards a potentially brighter future. We provide world class expertise in international executive management and leadership coaching. We coach individu-als or groups and we create strengths when building and developing organizations.

We know it is all about focusing on your already existing strengths, instead of spending time searching for weak-nesses that need to be improved. We proceed according to well-developed, and time-tested, methods and we know that finding unleashed potentials will lead to profitable e"ects at your company. We have more than 20 years’ expertise in supervising, sta" management and management coaching.

Chamber representativeGunilla Hüllert, Owner

Mind Your Brand ABFranzengatan 55SE-112 15 Stockholm, SwedenTel: +46 8 608 17 80Email: [email protected]: www.mindyourbrand.se

ActivitiesMind Your Brand is a professional training company in the Swedish management style. Our specialty is Scandinavian methods of marketing and brand strategy, plus training and professional development for brand managers and market-ing executives. Our services consist mainly of training and professional guidance in these topics: using the secrets behind successful Swedish brands; adopting Swedish brand management approaches for international brands; succeed-ing with Chinese brands in Scandinavian markets; setting up a regional marketing team and brand management unit in Sweden; brand management training courses; and eco-branding, sustainability and CSR initiatives.

Mind Your Brand was founded in 1999 by Carl Peyron. Since then, the company has trained and certified over 600 brand and marketing professionals in Scandinavia and abroad. Mind Your Brand has experience in working with cli-ents such as Ericsson, Volvo, Nordea, Diaverum, Vattenfall, The Swedish Institute and Stockholm University.

Chamber representativeCarl Peyron, CEO

Shop No.65, 1/F, Admiralty Centre, 18 Harcourt Road, Hong Kong

Tel: 852-2877-2227 Fax: 852-2877-2120

Mobile: 9051-9499 E-mail: [email protected]

Opening Hour: Mon – Sat 9:00am – 7:00pm Sunday 2:00pm – 6:00pm

CHINA ORDINARY MEMBERS >>>

School of Business and IT, University of BoråsAllégatan 1, SE-501 90 Borås, SwedenTel: +46 33 435 4000Fax: +46 33 435 4007Web: www.hb.se/hit

ActivitiesStarting a new double degree programme in International Marketing and IT.

Chamber representativesGrace Zhe GuE-mail: [email protected] Mobile: +46 73 230 5965Rolf Appelkvist E-mail: [email protected] Mobile: +46 70 836 4115

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STOCKHOLM GOTHENBURG MALMO HELSINGBORG BRUSSELS HONG KONG SHANGHAI

The secret of successAre you considering expanding or starting up your business in Sweden or China? Let Vinge assist you by downloading our apps free of charge. Take advantage of our expertise and many years´ experience.

“Business in Sweden” is designed to help you when you are about to start your business in Sweden. Available on Android market in English and Chinese.

“Vinge China” is designed to help you when you are about to start your business in China. Available on Appstore in English.

Vinge has Swedish lawyers and Chinese legal consultants based in Shanghai, Hong Kong and in Vinge’s o!ces in Sweden. For more than 20 years Vinge has assisted clients in their business activities in China and has advised foreign clients in all matters regarding trade and investments between Sweden and China.

Asia Gateway Fasteners Co, Ltd, Shanghai Rep O!ceRoom 1308, Yu An BuildingNo 738 Dongfang RoadPudong New DistrictShanghai 200122Tel: +86 21 6876 0732 Fax: +86 21 5830 6015 Web: www.agw-fasteners.com

ActivitiesWe are sourcing and exporting construction material such as tools, fasteners, tarpaulin, fibreglass and more, used both by professional and DIY markets. We also supply products to the mining and infrastructure industry in North Europe.

Chamber representativesRickard Wentzel, DirectorE-mail: [email protected] Mobile: +86 158 2177 7564Fredrik Karnsby, DirectorE-mail: #@agwfasteners.com Mobile: +86 158 2177 7562

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EMBA Machinery (Shanghai) Co, LtdBuilding 22, No 180, Jinxi Road Songjiang District, Shanghai 201614Tel: +86 21 6775 3498 Fax: +88 21 6775 3499Web: www.emba.com

ActivitiesEMBA Machinery is a leading supplier to the corrugated paperboard industry worldwide. The EMBA machines are renowned for extremely high productivity and box quality thanks to the very short set-up times, high-speed produc-tion and reliable function. EMBA Machinery (Shanghai) Co, Ltd is active in parts sourcing, machinery sales and cus-tomer service to the markets of China and Far East Asia.

Chamber representativesWeine Widar, Vice General ManagerE-mail: [email protected] Mobile: +86 182 1700 0073Claire Qu, Financial ControllerE-mail: [email protected] Mobile: +86 136 2182 2148

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Kinaresor Draken ABPO Box 19067Tulegatan 39, StockholmSE-10432 SwedenTel: +46 8 5459 5200Fax: +46 8 5459 5201Web: www.kinaresor.se

ActivitiesA specialised tour-operating business for the Swedish mar-ket to China.

Chamber representativesMats Andersson, CEOE-mail: [email protected]: +46 73 707 0261Per CameniusChairman of the Board, Business DevelopmentE-mail: [email protected]: +46 708 934 855

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Perstorp (Shanghai) Chemical Trading Co, LtdRoom 1901/1910, Shanghai Times Square, No 93, Huaihai RoadShanghai 200021Tel: +86 21 6391 0531Fax: +86 21 6391 0535Web: www.perstorp.com

ActivitiesPerstorp Shanghai is the sales o!ce for Perstorp chemical products in China. We provide a trading platform with stock sales and technical support through our application labora-tory in Shanghai. Our products are essential building blocks or functional chemicals designed to provide certain planned and desired characteristics for customers in the coating, plastic processing, automotive industries, construction and engineering, and the agricultural sector, among others.

Chamber representativesJohnny Loo, General ManagerE-mail: [email protected]: +86 136 2197 5422Helen Lv, Financial ManagerE-mail: [email protected]: +86 137 8898 8810

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36 DRAGONNEWS

We assist industrial companies with a complete range of products and services for efficient maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) of their production facilities.

www.tools.se

U N I T E D F O R I N D U S T R I A L E F F I C I E N C Y

Teleopti22A, Ginza Mall Tower CNo 48, Dongzhimenwai Avenue Dongcheng DistrictBeijing 100027Tel: +86 10 5139 6200Fax: +86 10-5139 6400Web: www.teleopti.com

ActivitiesTeleopti is a leading provider of strategic solutions for enterprise workforce management and telecom expense management. Hundreds of enterprises around the world rely on high-end and flexible solutions from Teleopti to attain optimal operational e!ciency and provide the highest levels of service.

Teleopti, established in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1992, operates through a large number of local o!ces worldwide and a comprehensive network of partners.

Chamber representativesOlle During, CEOMobile: +46 709 218 110 E-mail: [email protected] Malmqvist Norin, Head of Support and Test, APACMobile: +86 186 0004 6026 E-mail: [email protected]

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TruckCam Trading Shanghai Co, LtdRoom 502, Huizhan International Business Center, Building 6No 28, 9356 Nong, Hunan Road, Pudong New District, Shanghai 201300Tel: +86 21 5818 5331Fax: +86 21 5818 5330Web: www.truckcam.com

ActivitiesTruckCam is one of the world’s biggest producers of wheel alignment systems for heavy commercial vehicles. TruckCam’s Shanghai o!ce is responsible for the Asia-Pacific market. We provide installation, training and support to manufacturers and workshops in China and other parts of Asia-Pacific.

Chamber representativeThomas Vernersson, General ManagerE-mail: [email protected]: +86 186 1697 3581

Unimer (Suzhou) Trading Co, LtdBlock C5, Suhong Industrial Square#81, Suhong Road, Suzhou Industrial Park, SuzhouJiangsu Province 215021Fax: +86 512 6280 6455 Web: www.unimer.cn

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ActivitiesWe o"er OEM industry-customised, quality-assured prod-ucts in rubber and plastic, manufactured by our selected partners. Long-term customer relations combined with global sourcing and experienced project management make us your best choice. Our engineering expertise to-gether with our lab and quality control secure the function of your products.

Chamber representativesRonny Larsson, General Manager E-mail: [email protected] Mobile: +86 152 5009 5190 Mikael Johansson, Project Manager E-mail: [email protected] Mobile: +86 138 1484 8725

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Wackes ABRoom 701, No 25 BuildingLane 667, Daning RoadShanghai 200072Tel: +86 21 3639 1981 +86 21 6074 2633

Web: www.wackes.se

ActivitiesWackes is one of the leading companies in Scandinavia for promotional items. We established a buying o!ce in Shanghai in 2006. Driven by our high standards, we are now establishing a sales o!ce in Shanghai to meet our highly valued customers’ expectations of good service and pres-ence. Our goal is to grow on the Asian market together with our present and new customers.

Chamber representativeThomas Davidsson, CEOE-mail: [email protected] Mobile: +46 708 998 511

LKAB Trading (Shanghai) Co, Ltd Unit 2007, Yueda 889 Center No 1111, Changshou Lu Shanghai 200042Tel: +86 21 5212 5103 Fax: +86 21 5212 6029 Web: www.lkab.com

ActivitiesLKAB Trading (Shanghai) Co, Ltd purchases for the LKAB Group selected, long-term sustainable and quality as-sured goods from Asia with the right functionality, right lead time and at a lower total cost than competing sourcing markets.

Chamber representativeAnders Lundgren, CEOE-mail: [email protected] Mobile: +86 186 1675 8161

CHINA ASSOCIATE MEMBERS >>>

Amanda BrattRoom 1803, Unit 2, Building 5, Tian Shi Ming YuanYang Zhuang Bei Li, Tongzhou DistrictBeijing 101100E-mail: [email protected]: +86 151 0165 3528

Monica RossettiHouse 507, Beijing River Garden Villas No 7, Yuyang Road, HoushayuShunyi DistrictBeijing 101300 E-mail: [email protected]: +86 186 0005 6307

Joakim SannervikNo 126, Tomson Riviera/Lakeside Garden Lane 2255, Luoshan Road, PudongShanghai 201204Tel: +86 21 3877 2071Mobile: +86 150 2177 9470E-mail: [email protected]


* The similarity between marketing and planting bamboo was originally conceptualised by George Torok, a marketing expert and co-author of the book .

[email protected]

[email protected]

Children’s rights

TEXT: Britta Öström, The Centre for Child Rights and Corporate Social Responsibility (CCR CSR), [email protected]

The United Nations Global Compact, UNICEF and Save the Children have launched a global initiative to encourage companies to better support children’s rights.

he business of improving sup-port for children’s rights in rela-tion to everything a company does has been given a boost

thanks to the launch of the Children’s Rights and Business Principles Initiative (CRBPI).

#e principles, written after consultations with thousands of representatives from the corporate sector, recognise the positive power of businesses. #ey call on all companies, big and small, to evaluate and understand the possibilities of impacting on the well-being of children, in partnership with relevant stakeholders including children themselves.

#e global launch in London was held on 12 March and is due to be followed by re-gional launches, the "rst step in making the new principles more widely known. #e next step will hopefully be to align the principles into the Global Reporting Initiative’s (GRI) reporting system.

Previously, children were only explicitly mentioned the United Nations Global Com-pact and OECD guidelines in relation to economic activities (see the “Opinion” section in Dragon News No 1-2010).

Historically, companies – when they were so inclined – tended to give money to child-focused charities. More recently, we have seen "rms thinking more strategically, aiming at sustainable change for children while simulta-neously strengthening their brands.

Projects for children are generally carried out in partnership, often with recognised non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and with leverage at all levels of society. When it comes to companies facing challenges with the supply chain, budgets are allocated to reduce risks when they occur.

Some "rms now are starting to focus on

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Business and children’s rights

anything and everything they do that can or does a!ect children, thus paying more attention to the core business. For example, in the spirit of the new business principles, groups of international companies working in China have created forums for discussions on children and business.

One working group made up of several di!erent "rms is working on practical meas-ures that can support children and young workers in the supply chain and encourage supply-chain factory managers to learn about laws in relation to hiring youngsters.

Management training to become better leaders of a young workforce is also becoming popular, and the training of migrant parents whose children have been left-behind in China’s countryside is also an issue being looked at.

In June 2010, realising the importance of a holistic paper on children’s rights for busi-nesses, the UN Global Compact, UNICEF and Save the Children took the lead, guiding the process of drafting a paper recognised by all involved stakeholders. #e draft paper was commented on at regional consultations.

#ousands of companies from all continents were involved. From the Nordic countries, IKEA, H&M, Statens Pensjonsfond Norge (the Government Pension Fund Nor-way) and the LEGO Group were major players.

#e London launch attracted representa-tives from the business sector, academia, gov-ernments and civil society. Sun Ruizhe, vice president of the China National Textile and Apparel Council (CNTAC), was invited to be the key speaker from China. China launches will be organised in Beijing and Shanghai this spring and a joint Nordic launch is due to take place on 24 April in Stockholm, at-tended by HM Queen Silvia. b

Principle 1: Outlines three core actions – policy commitment, due diligence meas-ures and remediation – and encourages all business to go beyond respect to the next step of supporting and promoting children’s rights.

The workplacePrinciple 2: Contribute to the elimination of child labour.Principle 3: Provide appropriate and decent work for youth, mothers, fathers and caregivers.Principle 4: Ensure that children are protected in all business activities and facilities.

The marketplacePrinciple 5: Ensure that products and services are safe and seek to positively contribute to children’s lives.Principle 6: Use marketing and advertis-ing responsibility to respect and support children’s rights.

The community and the environmentPrinciple 7: Take measures to alleviate the environmental impact of business operations on children, and respect chil-dren’s rights when acquiring or using land.Principle 8: Make respect for children’s rights an explicit principle of security arrangements.Principle 9: Help protect children af-fected by emergencies.Principle 10: Reinforce community and government e"orts to fulfil and safeguard children’s rights; respect the rule of law and follow responsible business practices.

The principles in brief

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SWEDISH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE in Hong Kong

DragonNews_version 2011.indd 4 2011-04-04 10:12:13

he Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong invites Swedish companies within the clean tech, new energy and clean vehicles areas to a Green Business Seminar in Hong Kong 23-25 May, 2012.

#e seminar is arranged in collaboration with the Consulate Gen-eral of Sweden, the Environmental Technology Cooperation - Govern-ment O%ces of Sweden, the Swedish Trade Council, the Hong Kong Science Park and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. #e importance of China’s 12th "ve-year plan and the opportunities this creates will be highlighted.

Several large urban developments focusing on sustainability and green business are being planned in Hong Kong. One of these developments is the Kai Tak/Kowloon East project. With this project, Hong Kong aims to develop a “green” business hub at the site of the old airport. During the semi-nar, a Swedish delegation will visit the old airport area and the participants will also have the oppor-tunity to present their businesses and technologies for relevant stakeholders in Hong Kong.

Who should attend?

new energy and clean vehicles industries with a speci"c interest in doing business in China/South East Asia.

others who are instrumental in strategic processes.

Why attend?

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Several large urban developments focusing on sustainability and green business are being planned in Hong Kong. This is also the focus for a three-day seminar in May.

China’s 12th "ve-year plan and what challenges and opportunities it can create for your business and industry.

providers and collaborators.

in Hong Kong (Kai Tak/Kowloon East).

their businesses and technologies to relevant stakeholders and developers.

The three-day programme includes seminars, presentations from prominent leaders within relevant areas, workshops, networking and excursions. Below are some of the speakers:

Huang Ming, China Himin Solar Corporation, recipient of the “alternative Nobel Prize”, the Right Livelihood Award in Stockholm 2011; Mats Denninger, High Representative, International Environ-

mental Technology Cooperation, Government O%ces of Sweden; Jörgen Halldin, Consul General of Sweden in Hong Kong & Macau; Ulf Ohrling, Resident Partner, Mannheimer Swartling; David O’Rear, Chief Economist, Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce; and Pansy Yau, Chief Economist, Hong Kong Trade Development Council.

#e cost for participating in the three-day seminar is HK$11,495 (price based on a minimum of 15 participants). #e price includes entrance to all activities, three nights at the Empire Hotel, breakfast, lunch, dinner, cocktail and local taxes. Excluded in the price are $ight tickets to and from Hong Kong.

A special rate applies for those who do not wish to include the hotel stay.

To register, please contact SwedCham at [email protected] or +852 2525 0349.

Last day to register to guarantee room avail-ability is 22 April, 2012. b

Invitation to a Green Business Seminar

42 DRAGONNEWS

To see how we can help you please visit our website www.pcs.com.hk orwrite to John Barclay at [email protected]

DragonNews_outlined.indd 1 2011-02-24 15:23:37 Swedish companies are doing well in China and the immediate business outlook is bright. This is an overall conclusion in the annual Business Confidence Survey, which was conducted in late summer 2011 with 166 member companies of the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in China in collabora-tion with the Embassy of Sweden and the Swedish Trade Council.

Other conclusions are that industrial companies are the biggest winners, that import and export procedures and non-transparent governance are the biggest obstacles to trade, and that Swedish

companies see their biggest advantage in product quality and the biggest disadvan-tage in local competitors receiving benefits from superior government relations.

The results are in line with other surveys conducted by other chambers of commerce in China.

The report, the 10th since 2000, has been sent to all chamber representatives and can be downloaded at:www.swedishchamber.com.cnIf you haven’t received it or if you want an extra printed copy, please contact the chamber at: [email protected].

The Chinese Visa Application Service Centre, which is responsible for visa applications to China in Stockholm and Gothenburg, has new rules from January 2012 for applying for a Chinese tourist visa.

The big change for Swedish citizens is that an invitation letter is needed, either from a friend or relative living in China or by a Chinese company, for example a travel agency.

If these documents cannot be provided, the applicant needs to show a birth certificate (personbevis), a travel plan, copy of the round-trip ticket and hotel booking reservations.

More information can be found at the visa service centre´s homepage: http://www.visaforchina.org/STH_EN/

New visa rules for China

Swedish companies bullish on China

Building on the success of the Anniversary Internship Grant, the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong will award a new HK$100,000 internship grant in 2012 to a recently graduated university student.

The winner will be invited to complete a 10-month internship at the chamber, starting September 1, 2012. The cash grant will be distributed in monthly instalments to support the recipient’s living expenses. In addition, the chamber will reimburse one roundtrip airfare from Sweden to Hong Kong.

The SwedCham Graduate Internship Grant 2012 highlights the long-term presence, com-mitment and spearhead position of Swedish businesses in Hong Kong and South China. It also highlights the instrumental part played by the chamber in advancing Swedish interests in the region during the past quarter of a century.

Recent university graduates with a demon-strated interest in Hong Kong and Greater Chi-na are welcome to apply. Detailed application instructions can be found on the chamber’s website, www.swedcham.com.hk.

SwedCham Graduate Internship Grant 2012

Dan Fjeldheim Ek is the current

holder of the internship grant

at SwedCham Hong Kong.

To apply for a China visa from Sweden has become more complicated.

44 DRAGONNEWS

ur dear friend and colleague, Mats Johansson, passed away on New Year’s Eve after a period of illness. Mats came to China in 2004 as executive director

Asia-Paci"c for Fagerhult Belysning. Before that, he worked for IMI Indoor Climate and Uponor AB. His last position was as senior vice president for Gunnebo.

Mats was a typical Swedish entrepreneur who tirelessly built a production and commercial presence for his employers on important export markets. #is is the kind of work that skilful entrepreneurs like Mats quietly get done, and it forms a foundation for Sweden’s continued wealth while also generating positive devel-opments in countries where our companies are active.

Mats was active in working with associations and soon engaged himself in Swedish Chamber of Commerce activities in China, where he was chair-man for two terms in the fast-growing Shanghai Chapter. He was also vice chairman of the chamber’s main board over several years.

Mats’ intelligence and stable leadership has meant a lot for the Swedish Chamber of Commerce’s development in China, and especially in Shanghai. Among other things, Mats engaged himself in issues such as Swedish management and CSR. He was a much appreciated speaker who generously shared his experiences. Mats contributed greatly to Swedish participation in the Expo 2010 in Shanghai, which was a great success for Sweden in China.

He was a warm and wise person with a big heart. He had a wonderful and artful sense of humour, spreading good will wherever he went. Mats was the kind of person that people wanted to be around. He was always himself and had no need be assertive. We also remember him as a devoted golf player. Mats’ relation to China also grew on a personal level, and in 2007 he married Tracy. #ey gave birth to a daughter, Hannah, and Mats also leaves after him two sons, Simon and Daniel, from an earlier mar-riage in Sweden.

Mats was someone who a!ected many in a very positive way. It is sad that he has left us just halfway through life. Our thoughts go to Mats’ family and friends. Rest in peace.

Directors of the BoardSwedish Chamber of Commerce in China

In Memoriam: Mats Johansson

1960-2011

High school and Middle school

Come and visit SSHL

During the summer

SWEDEN HQ Environmental Air of Sweden AB. Mr Göran Hertzberg, M D, Ph: 0046 761 048 350, Mail: [email protected]

EAS Beijing Office, China, Mr Shangyou Dong, Manager, Ph: 0086 10 85322147,Cell: 0086 135 2199 5330, Mail: [email protected]

SWEDISH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE in China

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A F T E R H O U RS

RestaurantsChill-out Thai in BeijingPurple Haze is a Thai restaurant and bar, serv-ing genuine Thai food and great value drinks in a relaxed and comfortable environment. Take the opportunity to enjoy an afternoon in the res-taurant’s library, which has thousands of books in numerous languages and covering a range of subjects you are free to read and browse. In the library, you can enjoy the afternoon sunshine with a cup of co"ee as you work or just relax with a book. Wireless internet is available.

Purple Haze opened in January 2005, and is partly Swedish-owned. The restaurant quickly became one of the most popular Thai restau-rants in Beijing. They occasionally organise parties, presentations and activities for both corporate and private guests.

Purple Haze is located in the alley behind ICBC Bank, just opposite the Workers Stadium’s (Gongti) North gate.

ClubsSwede Dreams in ShanghaiShanghai nightlife profile and DJ Robin Blixt is introducing a new concept for the Swedish community with Swede Dreams at Bar Rouge.

Robin Blixt landed the prestigious gig of spinning records at Shanghai’s most (in)fa-mous nightclub Bar Rouge at The Bund a little more than a year ago. Since then he has had the crowds bouncing on the dance floor every weekend. He handles an international audience of ages from 18 to 60 and the whole spectrum of musical tastes with dynamism, never failing to create a party. As a result, Blixt was promot-ed to music director a few months ago. He is now in charge of all music at the club, booking famous DJs and events (keep your eyes open, as there might be some well known Swedish names coming up …).

The best outcome of this for us Swedes is that there is now a dedicated night for blonde Vikings – Swede Dreams. With the entire Bar Rouge sta" donning blonde wigs and Blixt mixing up the rep-ertoire with Swedish classics, the first Swede Dreams session was a night to remember. Blixt says that it was a special sight, seeing the Swedish flag proudly wave at the terrace in front of the Pudong skyline and playing Magnus Ug-gla’s “Kung i baren” (King of the Bar) as the Swedish crowd sang along with gusto.

Blixt will soon finish his Master’s in finance at Jiaotong University. He has also set up a DJ school and is now looking for a studio to get it kicking and to produce music. You can also lis-ten to his podcasts, which are already followed by thousands of listeners.

Watch out for the next Swede Dreams!

RetailSwedish store on Square StreetThe squarestreet store is located, as the name suggests, on Square Street, a stone’s throw from the Man Mo Temple in Sheung Wan on Hong Kong Island. Since 2009, David Ericsson and Alexis Holm have developed the concept from design studio to retail store, which in ad-dition to the founders’ own brands Gram foot-wear and VOID watches sells everything from sunglasses to leather bags.

The store has clear Swedish aesthetics of simplicity and functionality. All products are designed on site and much of the product development is done in the shop providing a unique insight into the design process. All pro-duction is done in close collaboration with sup-pliers, especially in southern China, and several leather products are produced from leather tanned locally in Hong Kong. The close relation-ship with suppliers means that products are of very good quality and at a good price.

Name: squarestreetAddress: G/F, 15 Square Street, Sheung Wan, Hong KongPhone: +852 2362 1086Opening hours: From 11am to 7pm every day. Website: www.squarestreet.seFacebook: squarestreet

Executive Homes HK Ltd 1601-02 Universal Trade Centre, 3 Arbuthnot Road, Central, Hong Kong

www.executivehomeshk.com [email protected]

Vi hjälper svenskar med att hitta

sitt drömboende i Hongkong

C-042474

41/F, China Online Centre, 333 Lockhart Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong. +852 2117 4800.

“Anybody can move goods from A to B. The difference is how you do it.”

“In addition to shipping goods from A to B, we can handle everything you may need in between: warehousing, quality control, labelling, consolida-tion, customs handling, certificate applications, bonded warehousing, distribution and project logistics. Also, we like to think we are doing it the Scandinavian way–more control and responsibility and less hassle and excuses. Call me or send an email to [email protected] let’s talk some Scandinavian. Welcome!”

Allan Riber Nielsen, Sales Manager

Hong Kong and South China.

www.scangl.com

Name: Purple Haze Thai Restaurant & BarAddress: Xingfuyicun Lane 55, Chaoyang District, BeijingPhone: +86 10 6413 0899Website: www.purplehaze.com.cn

Besides good food, Purple Haze also o!ers both a relaxing library and entertainment.

David Ericsson (left) and Alexis Holm design and develop all products in their store.

DJ Robin Blixt is part of the nightclub Bar

Rouge’s revival in Shanghai.

48 DRAGONNEWS

T H E C H A M B E R A N D I

atarina Nilsson has been resident part-ner at Advokat"rman Vinge’s Shanghai o%ce since 1 January 2011. In Septem-ber 2007, she was made head of Vinge’s

Hong Kong o%ce. She has a Master of Law degree from Lund University in Sweden and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Chinese from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. She "rst moved to China in 1992.

Nilsson is also the vice chairman of the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in China and the chairper-son of the Shanghai Chapter.

When did your company become a member?“Vinge was one of the founders of the chamber in Hong Kong, and joined the chamber in China in 1999.”

What is member value for you?“#e chamber provides not only great networking opportunities, but also a way for Swedish companies to be heard with one voice – both in China and Sweden. For example, the chamber recently wrote to the Swedish government urging them to initiate talks with the Chinese government regarding a bilateral agreement on the new rules on foreigners’ social insurance contributions in China.”

What are the big challenges for the cham-ber at this point?“Reaching all the potential members that are estab-lishing themselves in other parts of China. We see an increasing Swedish presence in cities such as Chong-qing and Chengdu, and we are currently looking at an expansion of our activities. Another challenge is to provide member value also to the Chinese em-ployees of Swedish entities in China.”

What sort of members do you see joining the chamber now?“New company members are getting smaller in size because it’s not only the big multinationals that are coming to China. #ere is also an increase in associ-ate members, meaning Swedes who join as individu-als rather than through a company.”

What events are of most value for you? “No one admits this, but they all think it: the social events are a big reason for joining the chamber. I thor-oughly enjoy the annual cray"sh and Christmas parties!”

What is your favourite chamber experience so far?“Meeting [table tennis star player] Jörgen Pers-son at the National Day celebration in 2011. Speaking at the table tennis event held as part of the celebrations was my "rst public assign-ment as chairman in Shanghai and I knew very little about table tennis. But Jörgen was professional, humble and genuine.”

Finally, do you have any comments on Dragon News?“#e latest issue was really top class. I was especially interested in the theme regard-ing Chinese investments abroad.” b

Expanding the chamber activities

K

Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Hong KongDIRECTORS OF THE BOARDUlf Ohrling, Chairman [Mannheimer Swartling]Niclas Möttus Olsson, Vice Chairman [Getinge Infection Control East Asia]Gunnar Mansfeld, Treasurer [Troy Group]Eva Henriksson [Henriksson Consulting]Dan Lindwall [Handelsbanken]Sta!an Löfgren [ScanAsia Consulting]Laurence McDonald [Ericsson Ltd]Kristian Odebjer [Advokatfirman Odebjer Fohlin]Per Ågren [APC Asia Pacific Cargo]

Swedish Chamber of Commerce in ChinaDIRECTORS OF THE BOARDMats Harborn, Chairman [Scania]Katarina Nilsson, Vice Chairman [Advokatfirman Vinge]Fredrik Ektander, Vice Chairman [SEB]Erik Ek, Treasurer [Swedbank]Yvonne Chen [GM, Swedish Chamber of Commerce in China]Pao-Ling Röjdmark [associate member]Birgitta Ed [Springtime]Johan Menckel [ Sapa Group] Tom Nygren [Ericsson]Lars-Åke Severin [PSU]Thomas Sörensson [B&B Tools] Sara Wramner [VisitSweden]

No one admits this, but they all think it: the social events are a

big reason for joining the chamber.”

There is an increasing Swedish presence in cities such as Chongqing and Chengdu, and the Swedish Chamber of Commerce is currently looking at an expansion of its activities, says Katarina Nilsson, who is the chairperson of the Shanghai Chapter and vice chairman of the main board.

50 DRAGONNEWS

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Dragon News - No. 1, 2012

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Transcript of Dragon News - No. 1, 2012