Tianjin: Top 100 foreign enterprises achieve return-to-work rate of 95%

Foreign enterprises have been making huge contributions to the economic development of Tianjin, generating one third of the city's tax revenue, nearly half of its imports and exports, and one third of its total industrial output value. More than 700,000 people work in foreign enterprises; nearly one tenth of total employment.

At a press conference on the prevention and control of the novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP) held on February 21, Zhou Lu, deputy director of the Tianjin Bureau of Commerce, said that “it is of great significance to effectively, and in an orderly way, support production resumption by foreign enterprises for the sustained and sound economic development of the city, while bringing the epidemic under control.”

To help foreign enterprises resume production during the epidemic period, the bureau has taken various measures.

Zhou said that on February 15, the bureau issued a paper requiring commerce authorities and foreign investment promotion departments in all districts to implement policies benefiting enterprises and supporting medium-and small-sized businesses.

The bureau provided targeted help to top 100 foreign enterprises, with tax paid reaching more than 70 percent of that of all foreign enterprises in Tianjin.

After assigning special personnel to provide services, and solving particular difficulties, the return-to-work rate of the top 100 foreign enterprises increased from 57 percent on Feb17 to 95 percent on February 20.

Efforts have been made to promote the resumption of work in businesses which support leading enterprises such as Samsung, FAW Toyota and FAW Volkswagen. Up to now, more than 300 supporting businesses have resumed production.

Communication has been enhanced with commercial organizations such as the chambers of commerce in the US, the European Union and Korea, as well as representatives of entrepreneurs from countries like Japan and Germany.

The bureau publicizes relevant policies to foreign enterprises through channels such as the internet, the media, and commercial organizations to keep foreign companies informed and updated.

All this is aimed at guiding foreign enterprises to make full use of the various policies and measures which have been implemented during the epidemic period, fully utilizing the role of protection mechanisms for the rights and interests of foreign investment.

Zhou cited Schneider Wingoal (Tianjin) Electric Equipment Co Ltd, a German enterprise in Tianjin, as an example. It resumed production on February 13 with 260 employees on the job, and its production capacity has reached more than 70 percent. The company has taken protective measures such as temperature monitoring, scattered positions in the production line, disinfection and off-peak dining in the canteen. It has also adopted intelligent technologies such as unmanned delivery vehicles and real-time remote processing systems.

Samsung High-Tech Electro-Mechanics, Freescale, ZF and other leading enterprises, while ensuring epidemic prevention and safe production, have assisted upstream small businesses in formulating plans, implementing measures, and donating epidemic-prevention supplies. It has transpired that large enterprises can aid small enterprises to resume production quicker than they otherwise could.