A host of projects are signed at the 2025 Qingdao International City Partners Dialogue — an important part of the sixth Qingdao Multinationals Summit.

The 2025 Qingdao International City Partners Dialogue — an important part of the sixth Qingdao Multinationals Summit — was held on June 19, discussing topics such as strengthening industry and supply chain cooperation under the new economic situation, promoting global economic and trade connectivity and cross-border capital flows, as well as prospects for investment and cooperation in Qingdao.

The dialogue's 400-plus guests included leaders from multinational corporations such as Mizuho Financial Group from Japan; AstraZeneca, a pharmaceutical company from the United Kingdom; and Atlas Copco Group from Sweden, which develops innovative solutions across business areas including air compression, vacuum, industrial, and power techniques. Among the guests were also representatives from business associations, renowned experts and delegates from Qingdao.

Zeng Zanrong, Party secretary of Qingdao, said Qingdao is an important coastal pivot city in China, an "opening-up highland" connecting the world with prosperous trade, a "treasured land for investment" with developed industries and abundant vitality, and a "livable paradise" with beautiful ecology and outstanding quality of life.

Qingdao is also an international hub city. Qingdao Port has long been a large comprehensive port, linking more than 700 ports in 180-plus countries and regions; Qingdao Jiaodong International Airport has passenger routes connecting to 128 domestic and foreign cities; and related China-Europe freight train services reach 23 countries and 54 cities within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Belt and Road Initiative.

In 2024, Qingdao's total import and export volume exceeded 900 billion yuan ($125.42 billion), accounting for 26.8 percent of Shandong province's total import and export value in that year.

Zeng said that Qingdao expedites the building of a "10+1" innovative industrial system. It prioritizes the development of two leading sectors — new-generation information technology and artificial intelligence — and breaks through in five emerging industries: life and health, intelligent connected new energy vehicles, low-altitude economy, green energy, and intelligent equipment. The city is improving the quality of three superior fields, namely smart home appliances, the high-end chemical and new material industry, and the modern light industry, and is planning one batch of future industries.

Qingdao hopes to work together with multinational companies to share high-quality development opportunities and deepen pragmatic cooperation in broader fields, according to Zeng.

This session of the summit was a fruitful event for Qingdao. It signed eight foreign-invested projects with a total investment of more than $1.11 billion and eight domestic capital projects with a total investment of 17.65 billion yuan. Additionally, 11 foreign trade projects with a total import value of $2.6 billion and an export value of $528 million, and eight foreign economic activities projects with a total cooperation amount of $215 million were signed.

The concentrated signing of these projects represents the strong confidence multinational companies have in Qingdao, with the open city increasingly favored by more such companies, insiders said.

Qingdao also pioneered the "summit consumers' week" activity, accompanying the dialogue with a consumption exhibition. Districts and county-level cities in Qingdao jointly showcased its foreign trade premium products, Laoshan tea culture, intangible cultural heritage and time-honored brands.

songmengxing@chinadaily.com.cn