A profile of Spanish firms in China: reasons to set up business and future perspectives.

Our objective in this paper is to analyse which Spanish businesses are operating within China, what their reasons are for being in this country, study their difficulties and list their priorities for the coming years. Reasons for satisfaction and dissatisfaction are also analysed. Spanish firms operating in China are mostly in the services sector (56%), in particular, in the areas of professional services, such as advertising, legal advice, consulting, etc. Almost half of the Spanish businesses have established themselves in the Shanghai area. Contrary to what is usually believed, most firms set up business in China to access the market, and not to employ low cost labour. In terms of continuity, the answer is almost unanimous: most Spanish firms plan to stay in the country for the next few years. Their main interest lies in accessing the opportunities of this vast market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]