SMEs from UK and China attend UKTI Manchester event

A successful business matchmaking event was held in Manchester during the state visit of President Xi Jinping, hosted by UKTI and the Bank of China, Britain’s oldest bank.

The Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) matchmaking event brought together 100 SMEs from across China to the UK to be matched with SMEs from the UK.

Michael Charlton, Minister Counsellor and Acting Director-General, UKTI China, said: “China is a huge and expanding market for UK businesses. UK exports have increased by over 37% in the last 2 years and we are determined for that figure to increase.”

The sectors targeted at the event included food and drink; healthcare and medical; retail and consumer products; clothing, footwear and fashion; aerospace, automotive, advanced engineering; and renewable energy.

The event provided the companies with the opportunity to benefit from being able to meet face to face in order to explore the possibility of doing business together.

The meetings were arranged beforehand thanks to a business matchmaking exercise carried out by UKTI, CBBC and the Bank of China.

Mr Charlton commented: “This match-making event is an excellent opportunity for UK and Chinese businesses to share industry insights, discuss market developments, break down trade barriers and develop relationships.”

Clive Drinkwater, Regional Director, UKTI North West, said China represented a “huge’ and “expanding” market for UK companies to do business. He said: “UK exports have increased by over 37 per cent in the last two years and we are determined for that figure to increase.

“This match-making event is an excellent opportunity for UK and Chinese businesses to share industry insights, discuss market developments, break down trade barriers and develop relationships.”

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