by YANGSHU Hongji

China's overseas expansion is entering a more coordinated phase, requiring closer alignment between companies, capital and markets, a Shanghai political adviser said during the city's annual policy meetings.

ZHONG Yongxi, a member of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and mainland China chief representative of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, said Shanghai and Hong Kong should draw on their respective strengths to help companies expand abroad through joint efforts rather than operating alone.

Speaking on the sidelines of Shanghai's "two sessions" — the annual meetings of the city's legislature and political advisory body — Zhong said a slowing global economy and softer domestic demand were pushing more companies to look overseas for growth.

He identified three ways Chinese firms could improve their overseas expansion.

First, leading companies with scale and resources should organize smaller firms, bundling offerings into integrated solutions tailored to overseas markets.

Second, companies should take a more collaborative approach to technology, combining intellectual property strengths to build differentiated offerings rather than competing head-to-head abroad.

Third, Zhong highlighted joint ventures as a way to align incentives, citing a Chinese company's expansion into the United Arab Emirates through a partnership pairing Chinese technology with Middle Eastern capital, which helped secure market access and distribution channels.

Zhong said China's outbound push was moving beyond ad hoc expansion towards a more organized model, calling for deeper Shanghai–Hong Kong cooperation, with finance and project matching playing a larger role. He added that wider use of artificial intelligence could help firms operate in foreign markets.

He also noted that Hong Kong has set up a task force to support mainland companies expanding abroad and has helped several Shanghai firms join official delegations to the Middle East.