Middle East countries eye Chinese opportunities for high-tech upgrade

BEIJING -- The recently concluded 2023 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) attracted enterprises from Middle East countries. Many of them focus on China's high-tech industries to seek cooperation for technological upgrades and transformation back home.

In trade promotion activities during the fair, diplomatic envoys and enterprises from the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and other Middle East countries introduced to visitors their preferential policies for foreign investment, business conditions, and industrial trends.

"Many enterprises are interested in cooperating with China, and we also hope to deepen trade exchanges between the two countries, improve the business and investment environment, and promote more cooperation between the two sides in the future," said Mohammed Al Ajlan, chairman of the Saudi-Chinese Business Council.

The council currently has more than 330 Saudi member companies, covering energy, infrastructure, finance, the chemical industry, medical equipment, construction materials, information technology, and many other fields.

Oil and gas resources have long been the main source of income for Middle East countries. In recent years, these countries have introduced economic transformation plans to promote the transformation from an energy-dependent economic structure to a diversified economy.

Non-oil industries such as manufacturing, digital economy, biomedicine, new materials, and tourism are key areas of transformation. Some Chinese high-tech companies are working closely with Middle East countries to realize such transformation.

For example, Huawei Cloud, Tencent Cloud, and Alibaba Cloud have all cooperated with telecom service providers in the Middle East to conduct business.

In 2022, Alibaba Group, Saudi Telecom Company, and other enterprises established a cloud computing company to provide advanced data storage services and solutions for Saudi Arabia.

Huawei is also stepping up its cloud computing and smart infrastructure investments in Saudi Arabia. Huawei's cloud node in Riyadh was launched recently and will become the core node of Huawei Cloud services in the Middle East, Central Asia, and Africa, providing secure and reliable cloud services.

Al Yah Satellite Communications Company from the United Arab Emirates told Xinhua that in the past decade, the company has expanded its business in China and will continue to increase market investment in the future. It hopes to have more cooperation with China in satellite communication.

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation completed a satellite assembly, integration, and test (AIT) center project in Egypt this June. It is China's first spacecraft development infrastructure export project for satellite AIT, making Egypt the first African country to have satellite AIT capabilities in the Middle East.

According to Amir Ghorbanali, director of China Iran Trade Promotion Center, Iran and China have been cooperating well in the energy sector. He hopes the two countries will expand cooperation to more fields, such as high-tech industries and the food industry in the future.

"China's digital trade is developing rapidly, and we look forward to meeting more Chinese partners. We can sell more high-quality Iranian products to China through e-commerce platforms to further promote trade cooperation between the two countries," he added.

Jiang Liqin, head of clients and markets of KPMG China, said the new round of sci-tech revolution and industrial transformation in the world, especially the rapid development of China's science and technology, provide potential cooperation opportunities for countries, including Gulf countries, to seek high-tech industrial transformation.

KPMG China published a report during the fair, introducing the need for industrial upgrade and transformation in Middle Eastern countries.

"China's breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, big data, e-commerce, and new energy are all important reasons for attracting foreign investment," he added.