SHANGHAI, Oct. 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- AmCham Shanghai was established on June 9, 1915. For 100 years, AmCham Shanghai has been at the forefront of American business success in China. To celebrate its 100th anniversary, the Chamber held a special two-day event that featured a gala dinner for over 500 distinguished guests, including U.S. and Chinese government officials, and a forum with top business and investment leaders, industry experts and entrepreneurs. The gala dinner and forum were both held at the Ritz Carlton Pudong.
Top government officials attended the gala dinner, which was held the evening of October 28, including U.S. Ambassador to China Max Baucus; Vice Mayor of Shanghai Zhou Bo; U.S. Consul General Hanscom Smith; Suzhou Vice Mayor Sheng Lei; Wuxi Vice Mayor Wang Jinjian; Yiwu Vice Mayor Xiong Tao.
The event, emceed by television personality Yuan Ming, began with a video celebrating the Chamber's 100-year history, with archival footage showing the Chamber's growth since 1915, set against a backdrop of major events in China's modern history.
This was followed by remarks from AmCham Shanghai Chair, Robert Theleen. Theleen commented on the importance of American and Chinese ties and the drastic changes he has witnessed in his 35 years in China. "Now we know that China is essential to any American business with aspirations of being a global company and we know what the people of Shanghai and the Yangtze River Delta are capable of," he said.
In a reflection of the Chamber's efforts to build not just strong commercial ties but also to contribute to Shanghai's community, the Chamber presented the Soong Ching Ling Foundation Scholarship Fund to students in need at Fudan and Jiaotong Universities. RMB 375,000 will help finance the university education of 75 students over the next two years. As AmCham Chair Robert Theleen said, "There is no better way to demonstrate our commitment to 'people, partnership and progress' than to invest in the next generation of China's leaders."
U.S. Ambassador to China Max Baucus commented on AmCham's value in building a global economy. "Your work creating jobs has led to a consumer spending boom on everything from iPhones to travel and study in the United States. And your assistance to the development of civil society and corporate social responsibility is vital to our work in China," he said.
Following Ambassador Baucus, Shanghai's Vice Mayor Zhou Bo spoke about the 2008 financial crisis and how the U.S. and China worked in cooperation to address various issues at the time and continues to do so today. He said that both countries have been instrumental in pushing the world's economy since that time, and the relationship will only continue to grow.
On October 29, the full-day AmCham Shanghai 100th Anniversary Forum showcased many of China's most influential business heads as well as entrepreneurs and other key business personalities. The forum began with a panel discussion featuring the China heads of major American businesses. Andrew Au, CEO of Citi China; John Lawler, Chairman of Ford China; Abinta Malik, General Manager and Senior Vice President of Gap Greater China; Amit Midha, President of Dell Asia Pacif ic and Japan Region; and Glen Walter, CEO of Coca-Cola Bottling Investments Group China shared how they build sustainable businesses in an environment that is complex and challenging yet full of opportunity.
In the next panel, Young CEOs: The Next Generation of China's Business Leaders, panelists discussed the factors they believe will guide the future of business in China as well as their approaches to running businesses in this swiftly changing economy. They included Kevin Guo, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Dianrong; Zhou Li, Vice President and Co-Founder of Wind Information; and Jane Sun, Co-President of Ctrip International.
As China's economy continues to develop, many Chinese educated abroad have returned home for job opportunities. A group of successful business returnees discussed why they returned to China and the opportunities that resulted. A panel titled Creative Disruption: Innovation and New Business Models in China looked at the role of innovation in China's growth and modernization.
In the afternoon, Huang Gan, Chairman of HNA Logistics and Jing Nealis, CFO of Shunfeng International Clean Energy talked about China's outbound investment with the founding partner of Rhodium Group, Dan Rosen.
James McGregor, Chairman of APCO Worldwide Greater China Region; Patrick Zhong, Head of Global Investments & Strategies at Fosun; J.P. Morgan's chief China economist Haibin Zhu; and Fan Bao, Chairman Chief Executive of China Renaissance, concluded the Forum with their views on the future of business in China, the economy and the potential impact of future economic reforms.
"Our centennial anniversary is a celebration of the contributions of the American business community over the past hundred years to China's economic development and the prosperity of the Chinese people, as well as the enduring friendship between the American and Chinese people. People, Partnership and Progress -- that's the theme of our anniversary year and of this forum," said Kenneth Jarrett, President of AmCham Shanghai.
About the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai
The American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, known as the "Voice of American Business" in China, is the largest and fastest growing American Chamber in the Asia Pacific region. Founded in 1915, AmCham Shanghai was the third American Chamber established outside the United States. As a non-profit, non-partisan business organization, AmCham Shanghai is committed to the principles of free trade, open markets, private enterprise and the unrestricted flow of information.
AmCham Shanghai's mission is to enable the success of our members and strengthen U.S.-China commercial ties through our role as a not-for-profit service provider of high quality business resources and support, policy advocacy and relationship-building opportunities. Visit www.amcham-shanghai.org for more information about us.
