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Chinese business not immune to African turmoil

By Pang Zhongying

Global Times, April 21, 2011

Confucius said "Do not go to or dwell in a state in turmoil." It's advice that still has great value and practical significance today.

The past several months obviously witnessed a global-scale turmoil that exhausted people's definition of nightmare, catastrophe and calamity.

The political cataclysm in Libya and the 9.0 earthquake in Japan shocked both nations. Various countries issued alerts and suggested their nationals delay their visit there, just as Confucius suggested.

The world has gone through a whirlwind of changes since the 6th century BC, when Confucius lived.

But the fractured politics and complex alliances of ancient China were not that dissimilar from the world of today.

What we, either nationally, in business, or as individuals, can extract from the crises in Libya and Japan is to seek ways to lower risks. We should also ponder how to keep losses of both life and property as small as possible when a crisis hits in a foreign land.

The world applauded China's fast and efficient evacuation of more than 30,000 Chinese from Libya after the revolt there erupted.

But China still had to count its losses in Libya after the war broke out and the Western air strikes began.

Economic losses are bearable, no matter how much they are.

But in economic or political chaos there is always the chance of losing lives as well, a cost that we can ill afford to pay.

Honestly, China's evacuation taught us a grand lesson. It is unwise to enter a market imprudently, even if the profits may be immense in the long term, without considering the political and safety risks involved.

Chinese firms often rush into new markets, eager to "go global," without fully considering the risks to their personnel, property, and investments. Sometimes the risks are inexorably underestimated. This may jeopardize China's long-term growth of investment in Africa.