Shanghai's 16th government-enterprise roundtable meeting – for French companies – was convened online by the city in East China on June 17, chaired by Vice-Mayor Zong Ming.

The discussion was especially held for France-funded enterprises in Shanghai, to enable them to understand and resolve their needs and difficulties during the period of the resumption of work and production.

During the meeting, Gu Jun, director of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, gave a briefing on the city's policies for accelerating the recovery and revitalization of its economy.

Representatives from the Consulate General of the Republic of France in Shanghai and the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in China, as well as senior executives from seven French-based enterprises – Schneider Electric, Michelin, Danone, Kering, Saint-Gobain, Sanofi and Sinodis – participated in the online meeting.

They introduced their COVID-19 epidemic prevention measures and gave details about their progress in resuming production, as well as expressed their confidence and determination to keep investing in Shanghai.

Zong Ming pointed out that France was the second largest market for Shanghai's trade with Europe, with bilateral trade volume hitting 108.48 billion yuan ($16.22 billion) in 2021, up 23.4 percent year-on-year. She added that France was also an important source of foreign investment in Shanghai, with total accumulated paid-in investment of $3.75 billion.

Zong said that Shanghai was making every effort to bring production and life back to normal. She urged French groups in Shanghai to take a proactive part in the city's economic revitalization.