People's Republic of China中华人民共和国

Agenda• Country Facts• Business Development• Conversation and Socializing• Food and Dining• Women in China

Country Facts• Population: 1.3 billion (16x Germany)• Area: 9.6 million sq. km (27x Germany)• Capital: Beijing• Largest City: Shanghai

(pop. approx. 19 million) • Official Languages:

Standard Mandarin (spoken)Simplified Chinese (written)

• Currency: Renminbi Yuan (1 EUR = 9.7 CNY)

Business Development

Conversation and Socializing• Chinese often use indirect language• It is important to keep the harmony and avoid any kind

of a conflict• No full respect for Europeans (non Chinese) within a

discussion• Please do not talk about politics, human rights or Tibet.

But it is common to talk about the salary

Conversation and Socializing• Modesty and unassumingness is really important• The Chinese are asking many private questions to get into

contact• Making photographs is significant. • For the younger generation: Using the “V” (Victory) hand sign

and even posing is very popular nowadays• A handshake is common, but not very common. Avoid a

strong handshake

Food and DiningVery important part when doing business with Chinese• Often invitations to business meals• Every invitation requires a re-invitation• Always about 8-12 participants• Chose a restaurant of a higher category to

adulate your guests• Chinese eat quiet early, at about 18 o’clock

Food and DiningAgenda of a business lunch• highest ranked invitator allocate places to the participants• The food is served on a turnable plate in the middle of the

tabel• Everybody eats directly from this turnable plate• Main food: Chinese eat all: meat ( also dogs and cats), all

kinds of fish, seafood, vegetables, soups, but also scorpions, snakes, insects and beatles

• Business meals mostly finish after 2 hours

Food and DiningTable manners and rituals• Relaxed table manners• Smacking, spitting and belching• “show acoustically that it taste good”• Never give one’s nose a blow into a handkerchief at the

table!!!• Toasts are very popular, especially toasts to chug-a-lug!!!• Everybody has to answer the toast to be polite!!• A kind of testing how much someone can drink- it’s a chance

to climb in the reputation scale!

Women in ChinaTraditionally:• a loving wife and mother

This is still the official view of this thematic

Women in ChinaBut:• In reality it is much different• Women have always been very ambitious, they only weren‘t

allowed to show it• The Chinese government has passed a lot of rules for

equalization of women

Women in ChinaFamilies• In most families, women have the power!– married women have much power– administrate the money– giving pocket money to the husband– in 77% of the families, women are in authority

Women in ChinaBusiness• More and more women earn their own money• Get well educated• Fast growing service sector even offers lots of jobs to women

from the inland

Thank you for your attention!