2014-15 Canada-China Business Forum Magazine | Page 52
TECHNOLOGY
TECHNOLOGY
second foray in North America after Silicon Valley.
However, this funding is a tiny sliver of the total
C$1.5 billion ZDG hopes to invest internationally in
search of startups geared towards the China market.
At the heart of this relationship is a shift away from
natural resources. From 2004-2013, Canadian
exports to China tripled from C$6.7 billion to over
C$20 billion. Some predict that China could surpass
the U.S. as Canada’s top export market by 2035.
Despite these impressive statistics and predictions,
one cannot hide the fact that natural resources
drove the growth of Canadian exports to China.
The challenge facing decision-makers in Canada
is finding a delicate balance between the desire to
attract international capital and the desire to keep
the jobs that accompany innovation and invention at
home. Although ZDG’s investment is not premised
on tech or job transfers to China, implicit in such
deals is the likelihood that businesses will seek
to move closer to their long-term customers.
Moving forward, Canadian firms must look for ways
to satisfy China’s growing demand for innovative
services and technologies. The country’s burgeoning
middle class is demanding products and services
related to education, the environment, healthcare
and other products and services to improve quality
of life. This demand fits neatly with Canadian
expertise and the strength of the Canadian brand.
However, this fear is misplaced. Interviews conducted
by the Centre for Digital Entrepreneurship and
Economic Performance (DEEP Centre) with
entrepreneurs at the ZDG-Invest Ottawa incubation
centre noted that the success of the Sino-Canadian
innovation relationship would be based on ability
to leverage the Canadian brand, especially in terms
of quality and safety. “Build here, sell there.”
This innovation-based relationship is already taking
shape. In late 2012, Zhongguancun Development
Group (ZDG), a venture capital fund owned by
the Beijing Municipal Government, partnered
with Invest Ottawa to create an Ottawa-based
international incubation centre to help Canadian
high-tech firms enter the Chinese market. ZDG
contributed C$10 million towards the project and
the centre now houses four companies specializing
in life sciences. ZDG’s Ottawa operation is its
Moreover, as these firms use foreign capital as
springboards into new markets, the experience
and expertise they develop will lend itself
to an international orientation necessary
to continue the company’s growth.
Fear surrounding intellectual property
(IP) rights will remain for many Canadian
companies. Negotiation will be necessary to
ensure the reciprocal IP protection in both
jurisdictions. A good Chinese partner can
help reduce transaction costs and risks.
The ZDG-Invest Ottawa example highlights a
potential path for the expansion of the
Sino-Canadian innovation
relationship. We should not
limit our scope to just a one-way
relationship. As President Xi Jinping
noted in a March 2013 speech,
“boosting innovation-powered
development [is essential] to make
China an economic heavyweight.”
Doing so has largely focused on
upgrading the country’s indigenous
innovation program known as
zizhu chuangxin. This program
sees billions invested in a range of
strategic industries, including next“The Canadian
generation information technology,
government needs
biotech, renewable energy, materials
to do more to ensure
and advanced manufacturing.
一家领先的国际投资机构
• 长远投资规划
• 多元,
主动的资产组合
• 投资泛亚太的公开市场,
私募和房地产项目
• Long investment horizon
• Diverse, actively-managed portfolio
• Public, private and real estate investments across Asia
• First international office opened in 2008 in Hong Kong
OVER
226
Toronto
BILLION
INVESTMENT PORTFOLIO
AS OF JUNE 2014
Hong Kong
OVER
33
$
BILLION
COMMITTED TO ASIA
PACIFIC AS OF JUNE 2014
London
于2014年6月
全球投资余额
New York
至2014年6月
对亚太区的投资承诺
积极管理
QFII额度
逾2260亿加元
ACTIVELY MANAGING
逾330亿加元
6亿美元
QFII PROGRAM
São Paulo
CANADA CHINA
FORUM
BUSINESS
51
CPPIB_CCBC_booklet_ad_140904.indd 1
• 首家国际分部于2008年在香港开幕
600 MILLION
$
Exposure to and engagement with these
ideas and the Chinese entities behind
them are key to moving Canadian
firms forward. While linguistic and
investment barriers remain, the Canadian
government needs to do more to ensure
a soft landing for Canadian companies,
especially small and medium-sized
enterprises. Reciprocity on investment
and industrial partnerships must be a
priority for federal trade negotiators.
a soft landing for
Canadian companies.”
A leading global
investment
organization
$
These investments are part of China’s increasing
prominence across a series of innovation-related metrics.
For example, the number of engineering PhDs in China
has tripled since 2000, and the number of scientific
researchers has grown by an average 12 per cent per
year. Chinese research in peer-reviewed journals has
similarly grown by 16 per cent per year since 1995, with
the Chinese share of published articles now reaching
9 per cent. China’s share of high-value
triadic patents has experienced similar
growth, increasing more than sevenfold between 2000 and 2007. And
while the quality and consistency of
this work remains a work in progress,
it is clear that China is an increasing
source of invention and innovation.
9/5/14 12:39 PM
2014-2015 ccbc.com
CPPIB_CCBC_booklet_ad_CH_140905.indd 1
多伦多
香港
伦敦
纽约
圣保罗
52
9/5/14 12:39 PM