00:02Now, political uncertainty and rapid advances in technology are raising questions about where businesses should look for growth.
00:11At the United Excellence Alliance Conference in London,
00:15speakers explored whether closer ties between Britain and China could help companies navigate those changes and create new opportunities.
00:24Our correspondent, Jen Copestake, has this report.
00:29Where could closer business ties between Britain and China lead?
00:33And how should companies prepare?
00:35Questions being explored at the first United Excellence Alliance event in London,
00:40held against a backdrop of political uncertainty and technological change.
00:44Our whole world is undergoing a lot of disruptions,
00:49first led by geopolitical disruptions and also technology, particularly with AI, robotics.
00:54There's a lot of sentiment here right now to think about global trade.
01:00In the past, it's very easy to predict what will be the future growth for business as usual.
01:06But now it's not business as usual anymore.
01:09From investment and branding to artificial intelligence and robotics,
01:13discussions explore how businesses could respond.
01:16For the forum's founder, strengthening connections between British and Chinese communities is part of that ambition.
01:22Community, we want to create, target people from UK and China, Commonwealth and the Middle East.
01:28I think because after living 16 years in London, I have many Chinese friends.
01:34And London is a very international city.
01:36People come from different countries.
01:38But I still think there's some barriers.
01:40For British businesses exploring opportunities in China,
01:43building those connections takes time and commitment.
01:46China is not a country you can just drop in tomorrow and get business the next day.
01:52You've got to invest time.
01:54You've got to obviously invest money.
01:56But investing money in terms of going there, understanding the market,
02:00but probably being quite clear-sighted as to what you want to achieve.
02:05Those business ties are also shaped by the wider relationship between London and Beijing.
02:10This government is probably open-minded about good relations with China.
02:15There are arguments around trade policy,
02:18where we're trying to synchronise British policy to some extent with the rest of the European Union.
02:24We're traditional allies of the United States.
02:27The United States, under the current administration, is very erratic.
02:30So the government's having to balance a whole lot of different considerations.
02:35But the sounds I've heard so far are quite encouraging and open-minded.
02:41As the conference comes to a close,
02:43the focus is on the opportunities for British and Chinese businesses to work together.
02:48Now, challenges remain, but the hope is that discussions such as these ones
02:51will help to clear up misconceptions
02:54and build a better understanding of what each side has to offer.
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