Swedish companies have a long history of expanding internationally. Wherever they go, they learn to adapt to the local circumstances of those countries. Sweden was the first Western country to establish diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China, and Swedish companies were among the first foreign enterprises to enter the Middle Kingdom during the Chinese reforms of the 1970’s. This book gives a full history of Swedish companies in China from the 1970’s to the present. What makes Swedish companies a particularly interesting example of European corporate activity in China is their tradition of transparency.
This text blends a combination of interviews with the business leaders who navigated this period of time together with the personal experience of the author, Bengt Johansson, whose career with the Swedish Foreign Ministry stationed him in China multiple times.