German firms see opportunities in new Five-Year Plan

BEIJING -- China's plan to focus on industrial modernization and diversification in the coming years offers opportunities for German firms, according to a German trade chief.

China's top legislature released the country's 13th Five-Year Plan on Thursday.

"One important area of business opportunity we see from the 13th Five-Year Plan is the focus on more innovation and this carries the potential for ample Sino-German business cooperation," said Alexandra Voss, chief representative of the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Beijing.

Voss was encouraged by the plan's targeting of medium-high economic growth through focusing on domestic consumption, innovation and green development.

China is Germany's largest trade partner outside Europe. There are more than 5,000 German companies in China and their outlook is positive, according to Voss. She singled out China's strengthening of IPR protection in recent years as particularly important.

As the Chinese economy is transitioning from a period of rapid growth to an era of more moderate growth, China remains an important business location for German companies, Voss said.

Market liberalization and promotion of green technology "are of high interest" to German companies and "we will also keep a close eye on policies which target the strengthening of domestic consumption," she said.

China is aiming for economic growth of at least 6.5 percent as the government presses ahead with structural reforms despite likely short-term pain.

"It is a difficult matter of balance. But in the long term, structural reforms will have a positive impact on China's prospects to modernize the economy," according to Voss.