Dear friends!

We are pleased to extend our warmest greetings to you all as we welcome the arrival of the Year of the Rabbit.

In Chinese culture, the Rabbit is a symbol of longevity, peace and prosperity, and in Western culture, the Easter Bunny symbolizes the revival of spring and the birth of new life, heralding a year of hope in 2023. People born in the Year of the Rabbit are believed to be vigilant, witty, quick-minded and ingenious. These are the virtues that we need today to face unprecedented challenges.

Last year, the world experienced a variety of unexpected difficulties and turbulence. China's economy grew by 3%, faster than most major economies. Total Sino-Italian trade reached a record high of $77.884 billion in 2023, up 5.4% year-on-year. The Tianjin Port Free Trade Zone Administrative Committee and the China-Italy Chamber of Commerce (CICC) signed a cooperation agreement to jointly develop the Tianjin Italian SME Industrial Park based on years of pragmatic cooperation. CICC will establish its eighth office in Tianjin.

Looking ahead, China's economy in the new era will achieve an overall improvement, and the long-term positive fundamentals will not change. The trade structure between China and Italy is expected to gradually recover when the energy crisis in Europe and Italy is eased. The series of measures that China implements to facilitate the movement of people between China and abroad will also benefit future Sino-Italian economic and trade cooperation.

We look forward to using the Tianjin Italian SME Industrial Park as a platform to work with our partners to inject more resilience and vitality into Sino-Italian cooperation!

Wishing you all a happy, peaceful, healthy and prosperous Chinese New Year!

The Tianjin Italian SME Industrial Park Team