As in 2023, Swedish companies' views of the future business climate vary, but last year’s overall negative trend continues. More respondents think the business climate will be less favourable or considerably less favourable than those who are positive about the outlook.
Financial performance is recovering, and most Swedish companies were still profitable in 2023. But revenue and profit forecasts are less optimistic in 2024. Economic slowdown in China, global geopolitical risk and global economic slowdown are topping the list of the most challenging factors for businesses in China.
Over the next three years, 28 per cent of Swedish companies say they plan to expand their business to other parts of China, most to Guangdong, Shanghai, and Jiangsu from where they are currently located – down from 37 per cent last year.
In spite of China´s goal to achieve carbon peak by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060, around a third of Swedish companies (34 per cent) in China still face challenges in their environmental efforts.
Looking ahead, it will be key for companies to continuously monitor market and regulatory trends and react to a changing business environment in an agile manner.
Please download the report to fully overview the results with a detailed analysis.
ABOUT THE SURVEY
The Business Climate Survey for Swedish companies in China 2024 is a joint initiative by Team Sweden in China: Business Sweden, the Swedish Chamber of Commerce, the Embassy of Sweden in Beijing, and the Consulate General of Sweden in Shanghai.
The aim of the survey is to improve understanding of the performance of Swedish companies, their perception towards market conditions, opportunities, and challenges, as well as their outlook in the Chinese market.
The 2024 survey was conducted between 9 February and 11 March 2024. The response rate was
52 per cent. 91 out of 175 SwedCham members in China responded to the survey.
