Manchester hopes president's visit will bring benefits

As President Xi Jinping spent a day at Manchester on Friday, anticipation and excitement in the city grew as to what may come after his visit. Although a cradle of the Industrial Revolution, the northern hub, which vies with Birmingham to be the UK's second city, is best known now for its soccer clubs - and one of them, Manchester City, hosted Xi.

The cotton mills are now part of Manchester's past, and although the city was for a long time the biggest financial center after London, it has been transformed over the past decade.

The BBC's move to Media City at Salford Quays beginning in 2007 created the foundation for a significant digital and creative industries sector.

The city that lays claim to have given birth to the computer - Alan Turing's "baby" machine is on display at the Museum of Science and Technology in Manchester - is now making advances in new-materials technology.

The National Graphene Institute at Manchester University, which researches the one-atom-thick wonder material, was also on Xi's itinerary.

Perhaps of most interest was in what the Chinese president said about Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne's pet Northern Powerhouse project.

The government is looking for Chinese investment in infrastructure that will transform transportation links between Manchester and other northern cities.

Wayne Jones, the new president of the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce and also managing director of engine-maker MAN Diesel UK in Stockport, Greater Manchester, said Chinese help in this area could be vital.

"If you look at other countries, commuting 35 miles to work is not insurmountable but here it is. China has a great track record in transport infrastructure, not only in China but also in places like Africa," he said.

The biggest Chinese involvement in the city is the 800 million pound ($1.2 billion) joint venture between State-owned Beijing Construction Engineering Group and UK construction company Carillion to build Airport City, a new commercial and logistics area next to the city's airport. It will be completed over the next 10 to 15 years and create 16,000 jobs.

Charlie Cornish, chief executive officer of Manchester Airport, said BCEG's international capabilities made it stand out in the bidding process.

"If you are a global company, you are likely to be more innovative in your approach to construction," he said.

Like in London, Chinese investors are having an impact on the city's property sector.

Ginko Tree Investment, a Chinese fund, acquired a 49 percent stake for 142 million pounds in One Angel Square, the new home of the Cooperative Group, in 2013.

Andrew McFarlane, who heads the northwest England operations of Colliers International, the commercial property agents, said the potential deals in the city are not always big enough for Chinese investors.

"A guy acting for a Chinese investor came to me and said he wanted to buy a single building let to a single tenant that was no less than 300 million pounds. I said to him he would have to buy a collection of buildings for that."

The 5,000 Chinese students - one of the biggest concentrations in the country - at Greater Manchester's four universities (Manchester, Manchester Metropolitan, Salford and Bolton) are also having an impact on the residential market.

About 60 percent of the luxury self-contained apartments at the 25 million pound development Vita Student at First Street were snapped up by eager Chinese parents, according to insiders.

The biggest Chinese inward investment deal so far has been the Chongqing Machinery and Electric Co buying Precision Technologies Group in Milnrow, near Rochdale, for 20 million pounds.

Tony Bannan, chief executive of PTG, said the Chinese have boosted research and development efforts in advanced machine tools.

"The thing we admire and respect most about the Chinese parent is that they often take a long-term view of the business. For a technology company, this is ideal," he said.

Peter Lusty, chief executive of Manchester Tech Trust, a not-for-profit organization aimed at linking technology companies with investors, expressed his hope that Xi's visit would excite Chinese interest in the city.

"Manchester does not have as high a profile as some other cities in the UK like Cambridge, for instance, as far as technology goes, but in many ways what Manchester is doing is on a far greater and more impressive scale," he said.

Like China, Greater Manchester has new strengths in e-commerce with Boohoo.com, the fashion clothing company, and Appliances Online, selling electrical appliances at Bolton.

The city is becoming increasingly strong in services, and Xi's visit might highlight opportunities for Chinese companies, since the Chinese government is keen to rebalance its economy to tertiary industries.

"It is important to drive home the message that services in the UK are not all about financial ones in London," said Clive Drinkwater, northwest regional director of government agency UK Trade and Investment, who himself began doing business in China in the mid-1980s.

"In Manchester we have business services, architectural services, training and development companies, many of which would be willing to cooperate with the Chinese."

Nick Jaspan, managing director of Prolific North, a Manchester-based media publishing company, said he thought Xi's visit could be transformative.

"Manchester has already been moving up the gears over the past few years, but for Xi to choose Manchester to visit is significant and could make a major difference in international perceptions."

Contact the writer at cecily.liu@chinadaily.com.cn

andrewmoody@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 10/24/2015 page2)