MNCs boost investment amid market optimism

JINAN — Robotic arms hum while workers move with precision through Taiho Kogyo Corp's workshop in Yantai, East China's Shandong province, as engine and compressor bearings roll off the production line, not only for automakers like Toyota and Volkswagen, but increasingly for China's thriving luxury motorcycle scene.

The Yantai-based company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Taiho Kogyo Co Ltd, has been "granted full autonomy" by its Japanese headquarters to develop and produce for the Chinese market, said Junji Koshima, general manager of the subsidiary.

He added that this local decision-making allows the company to respond more quickly to demand while tapping into China's rapid growth and vast market potential.

Europe-based Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC), a Fortune 500 global merchant and processor of agricultural goods, broke ground in late June on a 7 billion yuan ($975 million) food technology industrial center in the port city of Qingdao.

Spanning 153,000 square meters and slated for completion in 2027, the facility will specialize in oilseed processing, specialty feed proteins and food-grade phospholipids production. Once operational, it is expected to produce 1.5 million metric tons of feed protein, 370,000 tons of refined oil and 15,000 tons of phospholipids annually, while creating approximately 200 local jobs.

Positioned as LDC's regional anchor in East China, the industrial center will closely integrate with local port logistics and feed processing industries, said James Zhou, LDC's chief commercial officer and head of the Asia region. Since entering China's cotton trade in 1973, LDC has generated roughly a quarter of its global revenue from the Chinese market.

Republic of Korea's CJ Group, a conglomerate with businesses spanning food, biotech, logistics, entertainment and retail, is also ramping up its investments. The company is expanding amino acid and food additive production in Liaocheng, Shandong, reflecting strong confidence in China's market prospects.

CJ Group faces growing challenges from geopolitical tensions and trade uncertainties, while China is tackling these head-on by advancing high-standard opening-up, injecting stability and momentum into global growth, said Sohn Kyungshik, chairman of CJ Group, adding that the company is pursuing deeper partnerships and new opportunities in China.

Active in China since 1994, the group has attended all six editions of the Qingdao Multinationals Summit, a platform launched in 2019 to foster policy dialogue and facilitate project cooperation.

This year's summit in June drew 570 delegates from 43 countries and regions. Data from the Ministry of Commerce showed that 59,000 new foreign-invested enterprises were established in the country last year, an increase of 9.9 percent year-on-year. Growth continued into the first half of 2025, with 30,014 new foreign ventures added.

Xinhua