fco-21-96-sino-british-trade — Page 8

21 Tothill Street, London S.W.1 Whitehall 6711
12th January 1967.
Lunch for Chinese
Please refer to Item VI of the minutes of the meeting
of the Executive Council held on the 3rd January.
This is being arranged for 12.45 p.m. on Tuesday the 14th February at the Connaught Rooms, Great Queen Street, W.c.2.
Mr. Huang Wen-chun and five of his colleagues have accepted our invitation and we are also asking Mr W. T. Wang of the Bank of China and some of his staff.
attend.
Will you please let me know if you will be able to
2.
Ruth
Enter
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·
TOOM 13/1
13 February
DOM 13/1
Yours sincerely,
N.F. Webb Secretary-General
Chmme
Humy
MR. Moss
F.O.
中國
SB TC
英
Sino-British Trade Council
貿
With Compliments
易
协
会
21 Tothill Street, London, S.W.1
Telephone: WHItehall 6711
Enter ad
La
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M12/1
Memorandum
from P.5. Marshall
11.1.67.
Heeting with lir. Huang Wen-chun 11th January 1967
UGEVIDENTIAL
RECEIVED IN ARCHIVES No. 31
13 JAN 1967
FCG||
At the
General En route to the Commercial Office I noticed that the shutters at the Office of the Chargé d'Af: aires were still closed, as on my previous visit there. Commercial Office, however, shutters which on an earlier visit also had been closed, were now open and much of the gloom had disappeared.
Two blue-uniformed females now staff the desk in the entrance hall where previously there was one. Furn- ishings remain reduced to the simple minimum installed in December. The drinks cabinet is still absent, and on this occasion, no tea was served. Cigarettes were offered.
Huang Wen-chun came in smiling, and seemed confident. No colleague accompanied him. He closed the door.
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3
(1)
Huang passed to me the two invitation cards delivered to the Chargé d'Affaires on January 2nd, and to Huang'a office on January 5th. As I was aware, he said, the Charge was now in China, and could not attend. However, he and five other senior colleagues would attend. Mr. Li Wen-chun was typing a list of named for me to take with me. Would I please issue a separate invitation to each man.
I agreed and asked if I should also invite colleagues from the Chargé's Office, Mr. Shen Ping, Kr. Ma Chia Chun ?
No, they were busy and it would be best to limit invit- ations to the Commercial Office and the Bank of China.
Agreed.
(2)
I showed him a letter from Ripley of Longworth Instru- ments Ltd, The company had exhibited with 8.I.K.A. in 1966, and had sold anaesthetic equipment. They had a wide range of special equipment, they wished to demonstrate to Huang and his colleagues. Would he visit their laboratories with me in January or February?
Huang accepted without hesitation. We would make it in February, and he would transmit a suitable date and names of the party through me. He assumed I should be free to accompany them in February?
Agreed.
Cont'd....
I
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2
Would I please also send him a photocopy of Ripley's letter for his file. Incidentally, was Ripley's factory more than 35 miles away?
I promised to check the distance and said I anticipated no difficulty in obtaining Foreign Office permission if necessary for us to travel there. Incidentally, I believed that an invit- ation would soon be forthcoming from a company in Lancashire would he be free to go so far? It was an electronics factory.
He promised to consider a visit when he had studied
(Not yet sent).
the firm's catalogue.
(3)
I said we had heard from the Board of Trade that Mr Liu Ping of CCPIT would be here on holiday from Chile. We would wish to entertain him or his wife on a suitable occasion.
staying,
Huang looked absolutely blank.
I repcated it all and asked if he knew where they were
or possibly it would be better for us to send an
invitation through his office?
Ah yes, he had heard about the visit, but Mr Liu was merely a representative of CCPIT.
Nevertheless, I thought we should offer to entertain him as a courtesy, and would send an invitation in due course via Huang,
At this point, Li Wen-chun brought in the list of acceptances for our lunch party, (list attached), and remained with us thereafter.
(4)
matters.
Huang then said he wished to enlist our help in two
(a) I would know about China's desire to purchase an acrylonitrile plant from Prinex. A Techimport team had been discussing design specifications with the company for a month, and with one exception, all points had been settled satisfactorily. The exception concerned the Spinning Speed.
The specification put forward by Prinex stipulated a spinning speed in excess of Chinese requirements. At that speed, raw material requirements were excessive, and it was inevitable that there would be a certain amount of wastage.. Operation at such a speed could pose economic problems for China. This point of view had now been put to Sir Frank Kearton, and Prinex, for their part, had offered an alternative, slower-operating package. However, this necessitated the purchase of additional equipment, at an increased cost to China.
This seriously affected economic plans, and it was up to Huang and his colleagues to find an acceptable solution. Could I please ensure that Prinex realised that this was a basic problem for the Chinese negotiating side, and urge them to cooperate fully
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3
in finding a solution.
Agreed.
(b) The second matter concerned something which he was pleased to say was a very rare occurence in Sino-British trade. A certain company (name and address supplied), had ordered and received a consignment of sewing machines from China. espite requests, no payment had been received, and the firm now owed some £9,000 to China. It was a small firm, and may be in financial difficulty; nevertheless, the matter affected confidence in the integrity of British merchants, and must be settled. Could we please assist him in bringing about a satisfactory conclusion.
(5)
Agreed,
I asked whether the commissioning crew had arrived
to take over M.S. Dunhuang.
Seven senior officers were already here, and the ren- ainder of the crew should arrive this month.
The second vassel would be named *JINSHA', and should be launched in March or April.
course, vessel.
(6)
I told him we might wish to entertain the crew in due and I should like to attend the launching of the second
I told him that the organisers of the 'Do-it-Yourself & Handicrafts Exhibition' once again had offered exhibition space to China in the Autumn,
Huang knew nothing about this but had attended the exhibition in 1966 and was not convinced that it met their needs. There was a strong emphasis on tools, and only a limited display of foreign hariicrafts. He would let me know if China decided to exhibit.
(7)
I recalled that I recently sent him tickets for seven exhibitions due to take place in January. I had offers of many more and proposed to maintain the flow throughout the year if he did not consider the demands on his time already excessive,
He welcomed the invitations. They were of interest, and when he was unable to use tickets he always passed them on to his colleagues. I should continue to send them.
(8)
He passed to me some calendars for Mr Taylor, who had admired them and wished to have more. I also was offered one.
I also accepted a desk calendar, and copies of Corporation catalogues requested at the beginning of the month.
+
·(9)
He was sure I had seen all the sensational rumours and bogus reports on the China situation in the British and foreign press. As an 'expert', I would know how ridiculous these stories were.
Harvests in 1966 had been exceptionally good, and industrial production had risen by some 15. Lies and rumours such as he had seen in our press merely made Chinese more scorn-
of the opinions voiced.
(Huang) Mr. Oancia in Peking had only to lift the telephone and a foreign friend in Nanking had been able to tell him the truth about the situation there. There was no disturbance.
(Huang) The British Government had offices in Peking and Shanghai and undoubtedly also received correct reports about the situation there.
Here I remarked that he surely would have noticed that HMG had refrained from any comment on the situation. Reporte so far were all from reporters and China-watchers. Bales Tours were still advertising tours of China due to take place in March and Hay 1967. If the tours took
If the tours took place as arranged, the touriste surely would bring back the truth about the situation.
Huang, however, considered that these false reports would damage the confidence of British businessmen trading with China. Had I in fact heard that any were worried?
Of course, I said,
What do you reply?
many have telephoned to us already.
I inveniably tell them that they should not believe everything said to have been culled from wall posters, and so far as we know, the Corporations are still continuing normal business, and so should we. There was no cause for premature alarm.
This hit the jackpot and produced smiles and nods of agreement all round.
On this note we parted, and I have since written to thank him for a most productive business meeting.
12th January 1967.
中华人民共和国駐英国代办处商务室
Commercial Section,
OFFICE OF THE CHARGÉ D'AFFAIRES
OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA
4-7 Gloucester Gate,
Regent's Park,
London, N.W.I
YOUR REF:
EF:
Telephone:
Cable Address: CHINACOM LONDON
Telex 23343
Envitations to Lundle on 14.8.67
Cammenght Rooms- 19.45 p.m.
ין
Commerciel Secretary
Commercial Section
}
✔ Mr. Huang Wen-chun
Hr. Sun Shih-wei
✔ Kr. Jen Ju-tai
Ditto
✔ Kr. Shih Sung-sheng
Ditto
/lir. Chen Yuan-shen
Vitto
✔ ir. Li Wen-chun
Ditto
Saut
11.1.67
1
P
SB
Sino-British Sino - British Trade Council
TC
中英貿易协会
President: Mr. John Keswick C.1.0.
RECEIVED IN ARCHIVES N... 31
- 9 JAN 1967
| FCG/1.
Ente pl.
zoomo/1
The Association of British Chambon
The China Associatka
The Confederation of British Industry
The London Chamber of Commerce
Our ref: NFW/VR.
CONFIDENTIAL
21 Tothill Street, London S.W.I Whitehall 6711
Members of the Executive Council.
fur boss.
Dear her
5th January 1967.
Please refer to my letter of yesterday's date with which I circulated the minutes of the meeting of the 3rd January. I now send you herewith an amended page 2 of the minutes with the request that you insert it into your copy and destroy the page in your possession. This is by the wish of the President and in order to avoid any possible embarrassment by the mention of names.
It is also requested that you treat these minutes, as well as the copy of the cable I sent to you under the cover of my letter of the 29th December 1966, as confidential and keep them under your personal care.
Yours sincerely,
N.F-Webb Secretary-General
·
Enter
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(c)
SB
TC
IN CONFIDENCE.
Sino-British Trade Council
中英贸易协会 President: Mr. John Keswick C.M.G.
Sponsors: The Association of British Chambers of Commerce
The Federation of British Industries
Our ref: NF7/VR.
The China Association
The London Chamber of Commerce
21 Tothill Street, London S.W.1
+
Whitehall 6711
4th January 1967.
The President and Members
of the Executive Council
Dear her hoss,
I send you herewith copy of the minutes of the meeting held on Tuesday the 3rd January 1967.
+
Yours sincerely,
Thanks. Now
ja.
11/1/67.
·F. DN.
I.
Pl. amend Webbis
N.F. Webb Secretary-General
requested
M.
muniter
lette
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- below.
In
2. Classify this
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confidance."
Doni "//
IN CONFIDENCE.
Sino-British Trade Council
nutes of the twenty-first meeting of the size our 25 il a.m. on Tuesday the 3rd January 1967 67
etneson & Co. Ltd., 3 Lombard Street, E.0.3.
Present
Guest
·
Mr. John Keswick, C.M.G.
Mr. J. Brereton.
Mr. H.J. Collar, C.B.E.
Mr. A.S. Gilbert, C.B.E.
Mr. Eliot Hodgkin.
Mr. A.R.B. Hore.
RECEIVED IN ARCHIVES 16.51
-9 JAN 1967
Feoll.
01
hela
President of the Sino-British Trade Council and Chairman
Mr. ́P.A.E. Lawrence (vice Mr. Bramley)
Mr. B. MacTavish.
Mr. A.E. Marker.
Mr. D.J. Mose.
Mr. R. Reid-Adem, C.B.E.
Mr. S.C. Sevard, 0.B.E.
Mr. H.S. Stebbing
Kr. E.S. Taylor
Mr Theo Peters, H.M. Commercial Counsellor in Peking. Secretariat
Mr. N.F. Webb.
Mr. P.s. Marshall
Apologies for Absence,
Apologies for absence were received from Kesers Bibby,
Bramley, Stafford and Waite.
Item I Members of the Council
(a) The President' extended a welcome to Mr. H.3. Stebbing, Managing Director of Barrow, Hepburn & Gale (Machinery) Ltd., newly joined member of the Council.
(b) The President reported that Mr. J.A. Swire wished to withdraw from the Council. He asked the China Association to propose a replacement.
Item II Minutes
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The minutes of the twentieth meeting of the Executive Council held on the 4th October 1966 were agreed and signed.
4
2
Item III General Situation
-
The President welcomed Mr. Peters and thanked him
for attending the meeting.
In describing the current situation he gave it as his opinion that China is in fact in the middle of a revolution and spoke of the difficulties of trading while this is in progress. Members had been sent copies of a cable he had received from his own representative who had been in contact with a representative of C.C.P.I. T. in Peking concerning his proposed visit to China in the Spring. He had since received a letter amplifying the contents of the cable and this he reað to the meeting. It was disquieting that the representative referred to political influences both in the context of trade generally and on the subject of exhibitions. The letter also referred to the cultural revolution reaching its climax and all organisations were engaged in internal examinations with a view to the cleansing of old thoughts. This could have a serious effect on trade generally.
In the U.K. there was no sign of Li Meng-hou returning and Huang Wen-chun was adopting the attitude of being merely a stand-in. In the circumstances the President thought we should lie low but keep up the pressure as best we can.
Mr. Peters considered that the situation had
deteriorated since October when he left Peking. He thought that the cultural revolution had not yet reached ita climax, and that it was underestimated by foreign observers. He thought that things might be somewhat out of control after 17 years of stable rule. The effect would be felt in all foreign trade, not only Sino-British.
Mr. Hodgkin referred to the difficulties I.C.I. were having in getting answers to their communications to Peking.
Mr. Lawrence said that B.M.C. were currently not doing any business with China but they had sent an engineer there at the request of the Chinese.
Kr. Seward asked if the antagonism shown towards this country applied to others. The President thought that France and West Germany were doing fairly well, but any country that was deemed to support the U.S.A. was incurring the same feeling.
Mr. Peters said that he would be arriving back in Peking about the time of the Chinese New Year. As soon as possible he would try to arrange a series of lunches as he had done in the past, and the response to these should give an indication of the general atmosphere prevailing.
had
Item IV Agricultural Exhibition Proposal
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Mr. Peters described the meeting he and Mr. Webb had with a representative of the Agricultural Engineers Association at the Smithfield Show and said that a meeting with a number of their members would be held on the 20th January.
The possibilities of an agricultural exhibition would be discussed and he stressed that the Chinese would want a full proposal before saying whether they agreed or not. He thought a minimum of 18 months would be required from the date of agreement with the Chinese. There was considerable discussion on the content of the proposed exhibition and the organisation necessary for contacting bodies likely to be interested as well as for coordination of the project. As a result it was agreed:
(1)
3
I
That it is worth while to go forward with the proposal, particularly since noors had yet staged an agricultural exhibition in China.
(2)
That it was unlikely that tractors and the hardware of farming by themselves would have much appeal, and emphasis should be on the scientific side of agriculture, on which this
suntry couk offer a lot. seed selection, soil treatment,
cicides, food processing and packaging should be considered. lery shoula be included. Livestock was not ruled out.
(3)
That the proper body to take on the project would be the Agricultural Export Council. However they might not yet be ready to do this.
(4)
That the Board of Trane should provide the necessary
co-ordination.
(5)
That the impetus would have to come from the 9.3. T. C. and the Secretariat should therefore proceed in co-operation with those concerned to build up a proposal.
Item V East-West Committee
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The President said that when this was formed he was invited to take part since it provided an opportunity for exchange of ideas and information on treae with Communist countries. However there was a change of concept and an official body was being set up for East Europe. He had therefore opted out since there would be no place for S.B. T.0. in such an organisation, However he was still interested in exchange of information.
Mr. Reid-Aãan said that the new organisation would be set up in a week or so and explained the reasons for making 14 official.
Item VI Lunch for Chinese
The President said that it was proposed to hold a lunch for the Chinese on Tuesday 14th February. It would include the Chargé d'Affaires, Huang Wen-chum and W.T. Wang of the Bank of ' China and some of their stafía. The Chargé d'Affaires had been approached but had not yet replied. His Secretary had indicated that he might be going to China.
(a)
Item VII Other Business
G
Kr. MacTavish reported on the Technical Journal proposal which was under consideration in the Board of Trade.
He asked about the timing or an approach to the Chinese in view of the present situation. The President said that this was something he wanted to take up personally and it looked as though this might not be possible until Autumn.
(b)
Kr. Stebbing said that his company was finding communication with China quite normal except with Dairen, and asked Mr. Peters if he could suggest any explanation. thought there might have been a change of name.
(0)
The President
Kr. Collar mentioned the Chinese refusal to permit the use of the hall in Peking for the Swedish Exhibition in April and asked if anyone had further news. It was thought that both this and the Danish event in March were cancelled.
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