Broadened trade ties boosting mutual benefits

Market analysts and government officials are predicting China and Austria will be well-positioned to substantially broaden their economic cooperation and bolster trade ties in the coming years, thanks to mutual product complementarity and a multitude of agreements aimed at tapping into the Chinese and Central-Eastern European markets.

Strengthened economic and trade ties between the two countries are expected to create a mutually beneficial scenario because China, with its vast import market, offers significant opportunities for Austria that can contribute to local employment and bolster the European country's efforts in advancing regional connectivity.

Li Xiangyang, director of the National Institute of International Strategy of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing, said both countries have ample room for expanding trade and investments, enabling deeper collaboration in areas including high-end manufacturing, modern services, environmental protection and smart city development.

Attracted by these factors, companies such as China Electronics Technology Group Corporation and CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive have set up their European headquarters in Austria, and the Bank of China has established a branch in Vienna.

Despite disruption of the global supply chain, diminished demand for goods in many countries and geoeconomic challenges, the trade value between China and Austria, supported by enhanced bilateral trade ties, the tangible growth of the Belt and Road Initiative and the soaring number of China-Europe freight train services, only dropped 3 percent year-on-year to $13.36 billion in 2022, according to data from the General Administration of Customs.

China exports mainly construction machinery, computers, transport equipment, chemical products, raw-material electronics, textiles, garments and household appliances to Austria, which reciprocates by exporting auto and machinery parts, power-generating equipment, general industrial machinery, measuring, control and musical instruments, agricultural products and textile fibers the other way.

Wolfgang Schussel, former chancellor of Austria, said that as an advocate of an open economy and multilateralism, China boasts great growth potential, particularly in its domestic market. "There's also enormous potential in new innovations, new ideas and new patents. I'm absolutely looking forward to seeing China play an important role," Schussel said, adding that global trade has proved resilient in the face of multiple shocks amid rising protectionism and trade tensions.

Against the background of major global challenges, Andreas Riecken, Austria's ambassador to China, said it is no longer enough to just exchange strategies on green, low-carbon and sustainable development for the world's economy. "Rather, we must act by cooperating multilaterally and across borders in a politically responsible manner," he said.

China is taking concrete steps to foster green and high-quality development as it embarks on a path to carbon peak and neutrality. The country has set an ambitious goal of peaking carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and reaching carbon neutrality before 2060.

According to Riecken, China and Austria are driving forces behind green technologies, paving the way for a cleaner and more eco-friendly future. For example, Chinese tech heavyweight Huawei Technologies and Dronetech, Austria's largest drone service provider, announced new applications resulting from their collaboration in 5G smart farming in Austria 2022.

Under this partnership, they teamed up to validate the potential of technology in agriculture at the centuries-old Nussbockgut vineyard in Austria, where the technology detects small insects, monitors crop status and predicts harvests.

In a company statement, Huawei said that with the global population steadily increasing, agriculture has never been more important than it is now — yet fewer and fewer people are interested in farming, particularly in countries with fertile land. Huawei said its networked drones are particularly important to smart agriculture. To provide real-time info about information on the fields, they are fitted with lightweight 5G equipment that uploads information to the cloud for instant analysis. Farmers can access data about their fields without having to look in person. And they get the information in real time, not after the drone has landed.