Multinational firms keen on work report angle
A1 We look forward to China's unwavering efforts to expand high-level opening-up by signing and implementing more free trade agreements and shortening negative lists. We also welcome policies to further ease market access and create a more transparent and open business environment. All these elements will boost the confidence of multinational companies in the long term.
In our particular case, we have been constantly upgrading our regional headquarters in Pudong, Shanghai, to better serve our regional markets.
A2 We believe sustainable and green development require advances in technology and innovation, and China's determination to pursue high-quality growth is exactly on the right path. To accelerate innovation, we are actively leveraging external resources in China. For example, Covestro last year joined Pudong's Group Open Innovation plan－a government initiative to boost collaborative innovation.
A3 China continued to be Covestro's single largest market in 2021, and we are upbeat about our growth here thanks to the country's resilient economy, its ultra-large market and well-established industrial support capacities and infrastructure.
As China's industrial and consumption upgrades pick up pace and carbon neutrality initiatives materialize in the decades ahead, huge opportunities will emerge in industries such as renewable energy and electric vehicles for global companies like Covestro. We believe demand for our high-end materials will remain strong, in particular for those sustainable materials that can support the low-carbon development of both industries and society.
A4 As China further opens up and delivers on its carbon ambitions, we, together with our partners, are encouraged to look for more room to grow here with our growing portfolio focused on circularity. Covestro just announced an ambitious goal to become operationally climate neutral by 2035. I think this target won't be possible if we cannot deliver it in China. Therefore, I only see more partnerships here in this regard.
A5 We believe China will continue to drive global economic recovery and it will continue to offer unprecedented opportunities for multinationals like Covestro in industries such as automobiles, construction and electronics. Covestro regards China as its home market, where our cumulative investment has exceeded 3.8 billion euros ($4.27 billion) to date. Just last November we announced a plan to build a new plant for elastomers in Shanghai and we are committed to continuous investments in the country, in particular in low-carbon production and the circular economy to contribute to a climate-neutral future and the well-being of people.
