Foreign firms in China see ties fray with overseas HQs as information gap and communication chasm quell trust

In the 16 months since Beijing swung its doors back open and started rolling out the red carpet for global business leaders to perform on-the-ground assessments after three years of stringent coronavirus lockdowns, some lingering scars have failed to fade while fresh cuts have further blemished China’s attractiveness among multinationals.

A widening information gulf and more aggressive de-risking manoeuvres with historically strong trade partners have compounded a worrisome sense of hesitation among foreign firms and businesspeople to invest more on Chinese soil.