Israeli companies will be eligible to receive up to 50% of R&D costs in projects with Chinese counterparts.
Minister of Industry, Trade and Labor Benjamin Ben-Eliezer and China’s Minister of Science and Technology Wan Gang today signed an R&D cooperation agreement in Jerusalem. The agreement is important for Israeli entrepreneurs who want to do business in China, which is an increasingly important market for foreign companies, including from Israel.
China’s rapid urbanization, its huge need to build infrastructures of every kind, and the big money that this rapidly growing economy has at its disposal creates a magnet for entrepreneurs. At the same time, the euro crisis is dragging down the world’s stock markets, further strengthening China’s attractiveness.
Today’s agreement came after two years of negotiations between the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor and China’s Ministry of Science and Technology, which overseas industrial R&D in the country.
Ben-Eliezer said, “China is one of Israel’s key trading partners in Asia, but Israeli exports to China totaled less than $1 billion in 2009. As part of the Ministry of Industry’s strategy to expand the activity of Israeli companies in the East, we’ve formulated this agreement, which will provide the infrastructure for collaboration, especially between knowledge-rich industries, and boost bilateral trade.”
israeltrade.org.au 