To attract global investments and galvanize high-level opening-up, Shanghai's Fengxian district recently hosted a launch ceremony for its 2025 global investment promotions series.

The event presided over signing up of eight overseas-funded projects — involving a total investment of $170 million — spanning such sectors as equipment manufacturing, biopharmaceutics, new materials development and research and green technology.

District head Wang Yiqun warmly invited more entrepreneurs worldwide to come — emphasizing the crucial role of foreign-funded enterprises in driving industrial upgrading, tech innovation and employment within Fengxian.

As global industrial and value supply chains currently undergo profound transformations, the district is adopting a more open approach to support the development of foreign-invested businesses, Wang said.

The district is focusing on innovation-driven development, promoting industry-education integration and establishing collaborative innovation platforms between academia and industry, Wang noted.

Its administrative approvals processes are being streamlined to create a business-friendly environment characterized by marketization, the rule of law and internationalization, the official added.

According to Fengxian's authorities, key initiatives of the district include the establishment of a 1 billion yuan ($137.24 million) special development fund and a 500 million yuan investment guidance fund.

They're aiming to support the development of key enterprises, demonstration bases and open sharing platforms within the industry-education integration model.

What's more, the district is tailoring policies for the construction of key projects, the large-scale development of businesses and the expansion of major specialized industries to foster new productive forces.

It's also prioritizing innovation-driven development by enhancing innovation capacity and facilitating the conversion of sci-tech achievements.

In addition, the district is leveraging talent attraction policies of the Lin-gang Special Area of China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone and Fengxian New City — providing such support as housing purchase incentives, rental subsidies, salary incentives, healthcare benefits and education support for global talent.

During the ceremony, Kotaro Tanokura, general manager of Panasonic Industrial Devices Materials (Shanghai) Co Ltd — a unit of Japanese electronics giant Panasonic Group — praised the district's consistent support since the company's establishment in the district in 2001.

The executive also reaffirmed the company's commitment to ongoing investments in the district.

Six industry-leading institutions and enterprises, including Catalonia Trade & Investment — the Catalan government's public agency devoted to assisting international firms in investing in Barcelona-Catalonia — were appointed global investment partners of Fengxian.

Another of those recognized was BDO — an international network of public accounting, tax and advisory firms.

Companies like Ikea Distribution Services (Shanghai) Co Ltd — affiliated to Swedish home furniture and houseware retailer Ikea — won the awards of the "top 10 foreign-invested enterprises by the total import and export volume in Fengxian district in 2024".

SAS Automotive System (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. — a subsidiary of Indian automotive components manufacturer Motherson Group — joined companies in the "top 10 foreign-invested enterprises by the output value in Fengxian district in 2024".

Source: Fengxian district government