Brussels, 23/09/2009 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 22 September in Brussels, the day after her trip to China (6-11 September, EUROPE 9972-9974), Catherine Ashton met representatives from European companies working in China. The delegation was led by the president of the European Chamber of Commerce in China, Jörg Wuttke, and the director general of BusinessEurope, Philippe de Buck, who wanted to discuss business challenges and opportunities in China. The commissioner for trade welcomed the 2009 report from the Chamber, which denounced a slowdown in reforms in China and a trend to partially reverse them (EUROPE 9970). In Beijing, Ashton supported the demand from European companies to obtain fairer treatment in China and informed their representatives of the messages of the Chinese government's determination, which she obtained during meetings with the vice prime minister, Wang Qishan, and the minister for trade, Chen Deming. Some of her remarks highlighted a convergence of views with Beijing on rejecting protectionism, the need for increased cooperation to stimulate investment, discussions on public procurement, greater importance China placed on protecting intellectual property and the commitment to stimulate trade and investment in goods and environmental services, as well as low carbon content technologies. (E.H./transl.rh)