The business promotional event, "Connecting Shandong with Fortune Global 500 & Online Meeting for Deepening Business Cooperation with Japan and South Korea", was held on Dec 2 in Jinan, capital of Shandong province, via online and offline channels.

Shandong hosts the "Connecting Shandong with Fortune Global 500 & Online Meeting for Deepening Business Cooperation with Japan and South Korea" event on Dec 2. [Photo/dzwww.com]

Government officials as well as trade and political leaders from Shandong province, Japan and South Korea took part in the event.  

Twenty-three key projects involving new-generation information technology, high-end equipment, medical care and health, modern finance, energy conservation and environmental protection, big data, and cross-border e-commerce, were signed during the event. The total investment and contractual foreign investment of these projects were $1.84 billion and $435 million respectively.

Japan and South Korea are important trade partners of Shandong. From January to October this year, Shandong's imports and exports with Japan reached 150.52 billion yuan ($23.62 billion), a year-on-year growth of 19.7 percent. Its trade with South Korea totaled 219.9 billion yuan, up 32.6 percent year-on-year.

Over this period, 134 Japan-invested enterprises with $490 million in foreign investments were set up in Shandong. There were also 549 new South Korea-invested enterprises with foreign investments totaling $510 million.

Former Japanese prime minister Yukio Hatoyama said in a video address that he has always opposed the so-called "China threat" theory and advocated that Japan should participate in the Belt and Road Initiative and build a "community with a shared future for mankind". He expressed hope that Japan and China could carry out more cooperation in energy conservation, emission reduction, medical care and other industries.

Former Prime Minister of South Korea Chung Sye-kyun expressed his gratitude to the Shandong government for bringing "new opportunities" and "new development" to enterprises from South Korea, China and Japan. He expressed hope that the entrepreneurs of the countries could put aside the influence of political factors, complement each other and carry out cooperation to achieve mutual benefit and win-win results.

Li Ganjie, Party chief of Shandong, delivers a speech during the event. [Photo/dzwww.com]

"Shandong will enhance all-round opening-up and cooperation, create a first-class business environment, and provide the best service and guarantee for the development of foreign enterprises in Shandong," said Li Ganjie, Party chief of Shandong, during his online communication with Kuniharu Nakamura, CEO of Sumitomo Corporation.

Nakamura said that Sumitomo's business activities in Shandong are progressing smoothly, and the company will strengthen cooperation with Shandong in smart travel, urban development, medical care and elderly care, environmental protection and other areas, as well as make greater contributions to the economic development of Shandong and the improvement of people's living standards.

"Shandong is rich in hydrogen resources, with broad prospects for hydrogen energy application. I hope that SK Group will further strengthen the cooperation with Shandong in hydrogen energy business and tap the potential of bilateral cooperation," said Li during his online talk with SK E&S Vice Chairman Yu Jeong-joon.

Twenty-three key projects are signed during the event. [Photo/dzwww.com]

Yu said that Shandong is one of the provinces in China where investment by South Korean enterprises is the most extensive, and many South Korean enterprises are optimistic about Shandong's development prospects. He added that SK Group will deepen cooperation with Shandong in hydrogen energy and strive to achieve practical results.

Zhou Naixiang, governor of Shandong, said in his speech that Shandong will continue to give full play to its geographical proximity and cultural bonds with Japan and South Korea to promote practical cooperation with them in various fields.

Zhou expressed hope that enterprises from the three sides will take the event as an opportunity to deepen cooperation in trade, industry, logistics and digital sector to achieve win-win results.