Barcelona, 17-19 November, 2008

Chinese business leaders meet in Barcelona to discuss ways how Chinese firms can contribute to ward-off a global recession amidst the current financial crisis

Barcelona , 20 October. The Fourth Annual Global China Business Meeting of Horasis will soon be held in Barcelona, Spain, on 17-19 November. The meeting brings together some 400 CEOs from China and the rest of the world, for discussions on the theme “Globalizing Chinese Firms”. The Global China Business Meeting is the foremost annual gathering of Chinese business leaders and their global counterparts.

Outstanding speakers include José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, Prime Minister, Spain; José Montilla Aguilera, President, Generalitat de Catalunya, Spain; Supachai Panitchpakdi, Secretary-General, UNCTAD, Switzerland; Xu Kuangdi, Vice Chairman, 10th CPPCC National Committee and Yu Guangzhou, Vice Minister of Commerce, China. Further representatives of the Chinese government will be announced shortly.

As the current financial crisis intensifies, participants will examine the state of the global economy and China 's role in warding off a global recession. With the melting down of the global financial system participants will conceptualize the characteristics of the Chinese economic model and its merits to ensure long-term growth. “This year's meeting addresses Chinese firms' contributions to curtail the financial crisis. China is a fast growing economy and may lead the world economy in the future,” says Dr. Frank-Jürgen Richter, President of Horasis and organizer of the event. “My hope in bringing together Chinese CEOs with their global counterparts is that we will create a close partnership between China and the world in order to stabilize the global financial system through entrepreneurship, innovation and internationalization. In short, to allow both China and the world to better face the challenges of globalization in these turbulent times.”

Co-chairs of the 2008 Global China Business Meeting are César Alierta, Chairman, Telefonica, Spain; Léo Apotheker, Co-Chief Executive Officer, SAP, Germany; Chang Dae-whan, Chairman, Maeil, Korea; Chen Feng, Chairman, Hainan Airlines, China; Fu Chengyu, Chief Executive Officer, CNOOC, China; Jim Goodnight, Chief Executive Officer, SAS, USA; Li Dongsheng, Chairman, TCL, China; Li Ruogu, Chairman, China Exim Bank, China; Liu Changle , Chairman, Phoenix TV, China; Natalya Kaspersky, Chairman, Kaspersky Lab Group of Companies, Russia; Munir Majid, Chairman, Malaysia Airlines, Malaysia; Naushad Merali, Chairman, Sameer Group, Kenya; Juan Maria Nin, Chief Executive Officer, La Caixa, Spain; Anthony Salim, President, Salim Group, Indonesia; S. Sandilya, Chairman, Eicher Group, India; Shao Bo, Chairman, Novamed Pharmaceuticals, China; Yan Bingzhu, Chairman, Bank of Beijing, China; Zhang Yue, Chairman, Broad Air Conditioning, China.

Discussion topics for the meeting include the economic outlook for China and the world, China's Olympic momentum, and China's role in global trade, as well as a specific focus on themes like private equity, merger & acquisitions, corporate governance, branding, listing (IPOs), natural resources, and the efforts to ensure sustainable growth.

A highlight of the meeting will be the announcement of the 2008 Chinese Business Leaders of the Year, to celebrate outstanding entrepreneurs who have been building and leading successful Chinese global firms.

The meeting is a Horasis leadership event, co-hosted by the China Federation of Industrial Economics and Casa Asia, an institution under the Spanish government – with the City of Barcelona , COPCA, ICEX and Interes. Horasis (www.horasis.org) is a global visions community committed to enact visions for a sustainable future. Horasis is using its unrivalled history of partnership with Chinese and global firms to create a powerful platform for cooperation between China and the rest of the world.

Horasis is a global visions community committed to enact visions for a sustainable future. (http://www.horasis.org)