The Zhongshan Bureau of Commerce recently ran a workshop on investment, cooperation and market opportunity policies in Vietnam and Cambodia to help Zhongshan companies further understand the local investment climate and market opportunities.

According to information derived from the workshop, companies in Zhongshan have recently accelerated their pace for "going global" and paid greater attention to countries such as Vietnam and Cambodia that are involved in "The Belt and Road Initiative".

Hong Fu Footware Co Ltd is a large shoe OEM company with its headquarter in Zhongshan. A staff representative of this Company, Chen Xieli, disclosed that the company established a factory in Vietnam in 2006. Till date, over 3 billion yuan has been invested and a total of 18 factories are set up in the Northern cities of Haiphong, Thanh Hoa and Nam Dinh, with about 150,000 employees and an annual output value of over 13 billion yuan.

Chen also pointed out that, as a labor-intensive company, Hong Fu Footware sees investment advantages in terms of lower labor and land costs in Vietnam and constant simplification when it comes to handling relevant procedures. It is also reported that factories owned by Hong Fu Footware Co Ltd in Cambodia will come on stream. In the future, the company will expand its investment in B&R countries.

Kinglabel Adhesive Products Co Ltd has established factories in Xiaolan, Zhongshan and Changzhou, Jiangsu. Xiao Guangyan, the Board Secretary said that, in recent years, companies have shown their interest in "going global". Countries and regions involved in "The Belt and Road Initiative" are the highlights for investment  of many companies in Zhongshan. "According to our investigation, we see more development opportunities in Thailand. It is possible for us to build our manufacturing base there, so as to widen our sales network that covers countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Cambodia."

During the first five months of 2019, Zhongshan's imports and exports to Vietnam and Cambodia increased by 14.65% and 113.75% respectively on a year-on-year basis.