Opening remarks by Minister Chan Chun Sing at the SBF Singapore-China (Chongqing) Trade and Investment Forum

OPENING REMARKS BY MR CHAN CHUN SING, MINISTER, PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE AT THE SINGAPORE BUSINESS FEDERATION SINGAPORE-CHINA (CHONGQING) TRADE & INVESTMENT FORUM AT WUDU HOTEL IN CHONGQING, CHINA ON 12 APRIL 2018, 9.30AM

重庆市副市长刘桂平，

各位贵宾，

1.     今天很高兴看到我们又有机会带领新加坡的代表团，商界的代表团一起和重庆商界的代表团会面，互相认识，互相找寻更多的商机。

2.     今天早上我想和大家分享一下中新第三个合作项目的一些历史。在几年前习主席跟李显龙总理会见时，两位谈到了我们应该有第三个合作项目。挑战是，我们已经有了苏州工业园和天津生态城。在这个第三个合作项目里面，我们应该着重去发展怎么样的新领域，在怎么样的新平台，新起点达到一个更高峰。

3.     当我们来到中国西南部的时候，我们发现到其实中国西南部的潜能是非常的大。挑战是怎么样把中国西南部的潜能带出来。不只带出中国，也带到全球。

4.     我们商讨了许久，我们两方都同意，我们应该着重两大项目。第一，怎么样通过一个网络平台，新的营运模式来催化中国西南部的发展。第二，怎么样把融资成本与物流成本降到最低，把重庆与重庆周边的省市的潜能带出来。因为有这样的想法，我们这几年来都一直激励并希望把融资成本和物流成本降到最低。

5.     今天我们很高兴，有了过去两三年彼此的努力，能帮助重庆和重庆市周边的城市的一些公司，把他们的融资成本降了0.7个百分点。在物流方面，我们现在已经可以开始看到重庆通过多式联运 – 海，路，铁，的联运 – 把重庆的货物带到东南亚。尤其是在发展重庆与新加坡第三个项目的互联互通的南向通道。

6.     在前两天，习主席在跟李显龙总理会面时，对这个南向通道也表示有非常大的期望。因为以往在中国的西南部的物流都得通过长江，经过三峡，然后通过上海，才能达到全球各地。一般上，一个货柜箱要走这一段路最少要三个星期的时间。不过，通过新的南向通道，我们可以把三个星期的时间缩成一个星期。通过桂平副市长还有重庆同伴们的努力，我们会继续把这成本还有时间降到最低。

7.     我们现在的任务，现在的期望，是能达到“重庆新加坡一贯通”， “新中一贯通”，铁海达全球。如果我们能够达到这一点，我们就能再进一步的催化重庆与骤变城市的发展。

8.     通过这一系列的发展，我们现在可以开始看到有更多的货物通过这南向通道，从重庆南下到东南亚。我们也希望今年，通过新加坡作为亚细安组织主席国的地位，鼓励更多东南亚的企业也通过这南向通道把他们的货物北送到重庆和周边城市。这有着非常大的潜能。在 2018年的下一季，我们在新加坡会有好几个亚细安的会议。我们希望通过这平台能催化亚细安和中国西南部的贸易来往。

9.     不管是在资讯，科技或数据衔接方面，我们还有很大的潜能可以跟重庆一起合作。今天这个会议其实只是一个开始。我深信，通过今天的会议，大家彼此的认识，我们会有更多，更大互相合作的潜能。

10.  今天早上我和一些朋友分享以前新加坡和中国的合作大部分是属于怎么样把外资吸引到中国。不过，那是好几年前的事情。中国今天的经济发展已经达到了一个新的里程碑。今天，中国对外的投资已经超越了中国能吸引到的外来投资。也就是说，在接下来的经济成长过程中，我们可以意识到中国将会有越来越多的公司走出去，到海外发展。

11.  也因为这样，我们接下来不只想吸引更多的新加坡公司来中国投资，也希望能够和中国的公司一起携手去开拓新加坡的市场，和更重要的是，第三国家的市场。

12.  在两天前，习主席和李显龙总理的会议里，他们也谈到了这一点；怎么样结合两国的优势，一起去开拓新加坡，亚细安和第三国家的市场。怎么利用南向通道为我们整个东南亚和中国西南部的经济发展的布局定下一个更强，更好的基础。

13.  在这种种的发展史里，我们可以看到在我们面前的潜能是非常的大。我也非常鼓励在座的新加坡和中国公司继续的携手来抓紧这些市场的机遇，把我们两国的经济合作带向一个更高的里程碑。

14.  因为，如果我们说今天我们中新两国的经济与贸易合作正在一个高峰，我们也可以说我们不应该停留在这高峰。我们应该继续的往前冲，因为市场还是那么的大，潜能还是那么的深。

15.  所以在此，我非常鼓励大家继续的认识更多的朋友。今天会议的成功定义是，如果新加坡公司在场没有认识到至少十个新朋友，那你不应该回到新加坡。中国公司也同样，来了30-40个新加坡公司，也希望你们今天至少认识五到十个新朋友。这样我们才可以说这个会议有个圆满的结束。

16.  在此我再次恭喜大家举办这个活动，也鼓励大家利用这个平台把我们的经济合作带到一个新的里程碑。

17.  I will say a couple of words in English for the Singapore guests.

18.  As I was mentioning just now, when Singapore and China embarked on the 3rd G-to-G project, we had great aspirations – not just to build another industrial park, or build another eco township. Our aim was to see how we can catalyse the development of not just Chongqing, but Western China. And we concluded that we will embark on projects that will allow us to lower the cost of financing and the logistic costs, in order to bring out the potential of Western China. Over the last two years, that is exactly what we have done. We have been able to lower the financing cost by 70 basis points, compared to the past. We have a new logistic channel going from Chongqing through Guizhou and Guangxi, reaching Singapore in one week rather than the three weeks that we have to go through previously, through the Changjiang three Gorges bottleneck and Shanghai.

19.  These are tremendous opportunities for Singapore companies to come and work with the Chinese companies. Not just to bring in investment into China, but also to bring outward investment to Singapore, Southeast Asia and beyond.

20.  And for us to do that, one of the projects we will be embarking on in the coming year is to achieve, what we call a single electronic window – to connect Chongqing’s economy with Singapore on a single platform. And we can arguably say that if we can connect through the single platform, through data, to information, that will be more important than eventhe physical platform.

21.  We hope this year through the ASEAN chairmanship we will be able to catalyse the logistic chain from Southeast Asia through Singapore to Chongqing, to achieve the dumbbell effect – with Chongqing as the northern node in China to aggregate the volume in South Western China, while Singapore is the Southern node of the dumbbell to aggregate the volume in Southeast Asia.

22.  The beauty of this network is that, the more people join this network, the greater the economies of scale. This is a very different concept from the previous conception of how we do business parks and eco cities. It is not a zero sum game. In fact, in this new platform economy, the more companies we are able to attract to join the same platform, to use the same routes, the greater the efficiency and economy of scales, and the more we are able to bring the cost down for logistics and finance.

23.  We have great aspirations, not to just bring in investments into China, but also to bring outward investment from China through Singapore to the rest of the world. So let me encourage everyone present, to continue your good work, seize the opportunities, be the first mover to work with the companies in Chongqing and beyond, to establish your presence here to fully exploit the potential of South Western China – which is actually 2/3 the land area of the entire China with 1/3 the population. If the coastal cities are getting crowded and expensive, then this is the place for us to launch the new frontiers of bilateral cooperation.

24.  So on that note, may I congratulate the Singapore Business Federation, the Singapore partners. Let me thank Vice Mayor Liu Guiping and his team for the support to allow the Singapore companies such opportunities to work closely with our counterparts in Chongqing and beyond. And may we continue to grow from strength to strength, continue to remember that this is never a zero sum game, but it is one whereby we are on a platform to attract more and more people to come and use the same platform, so we’ll achieve even greater economies of scale to catalyse our development and to unleash the potential of South Western China together with ASEAN.

25.  Thank you very much and I wish you all a successful conference.​ 

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