Swedish and Chinese businessmen say that Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to Sweden is spreading the strong message that bilateral economic relations will be enhanced, providing more opportunities for investors from both countries.

Ronnie Leten, president and CEO of the Altas Copco Group, which manufactures industrial equipment, said that China's 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15), with its strong focus on energy efficiency, fits very well with Atlas Copco's business model, which offers products with low life-cycle costs, mainly through reduced energy consumption.

"We have a vision to be the global market leader, and to do that, we also need to have a strong position in China," said Leten. Success in China requires the group to attach equal importance to the Chinese and Swedish markets, he said.

Leten said this means focusing on finding, retaining and developing talented Chinese employees, having a strong presence in many locations across the country and offering Chinese customers products that have been locally designed to suit their requirements.

Leten said his company has invested significantly in China to strengthen its presence, and it currently has 15 factories and 140 field offices across the country. Atlas Copco's total equity investment in China is currently 3.5 billion yuan ($555 million). As of 2011, it had about 5,500 employees in China and revenues of about 10 billion yuan.

He said it was an integral part of Atlas Copco's strategy to work closely with local business partners to leverage their competence and innovation in areas that are not part of their core competence.

"Around 70 percent of equipment sold in China is produced in China," said Leten. "Revenues have more than doubled in the past five years, and China is now Atlas Copco's biggest market."

Leten said that Atlas Copco is a listed company in Sweden and it welcomed any Chinese investors.

Small and medium-sized high-tech companies have also been encouraged by Wen's message to expand cooperation between China and Sweden in energy-saving and environmentally friendly sectors.

Huang Liji, a Chinese-American who owns a technology company in California, said that China and Sweden could explore opportunities in the area of building insulation while China was undergoing massive urbanization.

"Sweden is leading the sector worldwide, and I think China can forge a partnership with Sweden in this area," said Huang, who was on a business trip to Stockholm.

Huang said Chinese investors should better understand Swedish culture, and vice versa, to make the partnership work. He also called on some Europeans to give up their sense of cultural superiority.

"They (Europeans) have this kind of mentality and they respect Americans and Japanese more than Chinese," said Huang, adding that his European partners respected him from the very beginning, mainly because he was from the US.

"This is unfair. I have found that there are many outstanding Chinese investors, and Europeans should regard them as equal to any others when dealing with them," said Huang.

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