(Yicai) Oct. 5 -- In one month, the 9th China International Import Expo (CIIE) will kick off in Shanghai. To date, over 1,200 enterprises from 99 countries and regions have signed up for the expo, with the contracted exhibition area exceeding 340,000 square meters. Among them are 265 Fortune Global 500 companies and industry leaders.

More than 30 companies, including Roche, Samsung, L'Oréal, and Pernod Ricard, took the lead in signing participation agreements for the next edition of the CIIE.

The CIIE is not only a showcase window but also a "catalyst" for multinational corporations (MNCs) to deepen their layouts in China.

"The CIIE is an important window for China to promote high-level opening-up and share development opportunities. It also serves as a crucial bridge to connect global innovative resources with Chinese market demands, deepen partnerships, and co-create value," said An Na, President of Henkel Greater China.

In An's view, AI, intelligent manufacturing, and the green and low-carbon transition are bringing new opportunities. Henkel looks forward to using the CIIE as a bridge to align its globally leading innovative and sustainable solutions with the actual demands of the Chinese market.

In September this year,Henkel and CALB have signed a Memorandum of Understanding and opened a joint Battery Innovation Center in Changzhou. In August, the Henkel Shanghai Packaging Recycling Assessment and Testing Center officially became the first institution in China qualified to perform EU paper packaging recycling performance testing and issue corresponding assessment reports. It can now provide localized testing and evaluation services that comply with EU standards for clients in China and the Asia-Pacific region.

Also in August, Boehringer Ingelheim announced a further upgrade to its strategy in China. A brand-new R&D center, set to be established in Zhangjiang, Shanghai, will further enhance the company's early-stage clinical development capabilities and external innovative collaborations in China. By 2030, the company expects its human pharma business to achieve around 20 registration approvals; meanwhile, its animal health business expects nearly 10 new products or new indications to be approved for the market, covering key species of livestock and companion animals.

Zhou Xing, Vice Chair of PWC China, pointed out that the investment formats of MNCs in China are undergoing a transformation. Fixed-asset investments, which previously focused primarily on factory construction, are accelerating toward the establishment of R&D centers and innovation centers. This category of investment operates at a higher tier, carries stronger added value, and integrates more deeply with the local innovation ecosystem.

In recent years, foreign investment layouts in China have continuously extended toward both ends of the "smile curve" (where manufacturing sits in the middle, R&D on the left, and sales on the right). Data released by the Ministry of Commerce shows that from January to August this year, 42,582 new foreign-invested enterprises were established nationwide, a year-on-year increase of 0.3%. The actual utilized foreign capital amounted to CNY479.95 billion, down 5.3% year-on-year.

Within this total, the high-tech industry actually utilized CNY 200.26 billion of foreign capital, representing a year-on-year increase of 35.1% and accounting for 41.7% of the nation's total actual utilized foreign capital—up 12.4 percentage points from the same period last year. In terms of high-tech foreign investment attraction, actual utilized foreign capital in R&D and design services, technology transfer services, and electronic and communication equipment manufacturing grew by 74%, 64.2%, and 41.9% year-on-year, respectively.

Chen Juan