VZCZCXRO1606
RR RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHLU #0287/01 0801714
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 211714Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY LUANDA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3827
INFO RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 0095
RUEHGH/AMCONSUL SHANGHAI 0003

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LUANDA 000287 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR AF/S AND EAP/CM 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ETRD EINV AO CH
SUBJECT: CLOTHESPINS TO CEMENT - PORTRAIT OF A CHINESE 
ENTREPRENEUR IN ANGOLA 
 
REF: A. LUANDA 171 
 
     ¶B. 2006 LUANDA 1204 (NOTAL) 
 
LUANDA 00000287  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (U) This is one in a series of cables on the Chinese 
business community in Angola.  Previous cables have looked at 
the social impact of Chinese expatriates in Luanda and the 
Chinese line of credit. 
 
Angola ) Land of Golden Opportunity 
----------------------------------- 
¶2. (SBU) Working in Angola provides most expatriate Chinese a 
chance to triple or quadruple their earnings through salary 
differentials, and employer-provided housing, meals and 
transportation (Ref A).  A few, however, have found the 
opportunity to become truly rich in Angola.  Like a previous 
XIX century generation, shrewd businessmen lured by Angola,s 
phenomenal economic growth are finding their fortunes outside 
of China.  Zhang Feijun, an independent Chinese businessman 
in Luanda, is one such individual. 
 
In Angola Ahead of the Chinese Wave 
----------------------------------- 
¶3. (SBU) Zhang came to Angola from Anhui Province ten years 
ago, following the example of other Chinese traders who 
trailed Chinese exports to their end markets, and before the 
current wave of construction companies participating in 
Angolan infrastructure construction.  Zhang began his 
operations as a trader, annually selling tons of items like 
clothespins, coat hangers, padlocks, and wrenches.  His 
business competes with Angolans and other foreigners who 
import consumer goods from China into Angola.  Zhang sells 
his goods wholesale to local vendors, including the legions 
of &zangeiros8 or street-hawkers, who peddle their wares on 
Angola,s streets.  He also provides short-term credit to the 
vendors as they come to his warehouse to renew their stock, 
which he sees as an essential service for trading in Angola. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Since the serious Chinese invasion began after China 
extended its first line of credit in 2005, Zhang has expanded 
his activity, partnering with an old friend in China to 
import Chinese-made cement: his friend provides the 
financing, Zhang the local business connections.  They import 
two shiploads of concrete each month, selling to Chinese 
construction companies as well as Angolans and other foreign 
builders.  Dependably supplying a homogeneous product in an 
unsettled market provides substantial profits - over USD 2 
million per year for Zhang,s company. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Zhang,s income from his wholesale and retail 
businesses in Angola have made him wealthy by U.S. standards 
and even more so by Chinese standards.  Besides his home in 
China, he has bought two apartments in Luanda,s blistering 
real estate market to house his family.  (Note:  An average 
3-bedroom apartment retails for several hundred thousand USD. 
End note.)  Unlike most Chinese, who travel alone to work 
overseas, Zhang has brought his wife and daughter to live 
with him.  He employs a staff of 15 Chinese and some 80 
Angolans.  Zhang,s business has put him into contact with a 
wider range of Angolans than most Chinese businessmen and his 
serviceable Portuguese has helped him reach out to Angolans. 
 
 
Navigating the Angola Business Environment 
------------------------------------------ 
¶6. (SBU) However, even a knowledgeable foreigner meets new 
challenges.  One Angolan customer, who buys USD 4,000 worth 
of cement per week, complained that Zhang,s Angolan delivery 
drivers were demanding bribes.  Zhang was both surprised and 
at a loss to find a way to prohibit his drivers from 
extorting his customers.  Until he can solve the basic 
problem, he is mollifying his customer.  (Note: This type of 
bribery is almost institutionalized in the Angolan business 
environment. End note.) He treats customer complaints 
seriously and works diligently to keep his customers 
satisfied.  Zhang also knows that his business remains 
vulnerable to the displeasure of the government or powerful 
individuals.  He has also traveled outside of Luanda looking 
for business opportunities along the coast in Benguela and in 
the interior in Huambo for both his trading company and his 
cement partnership. 
 
Comment 
------- 
¶7. (SBU) Today,s high profits may shrink, but Zhang is in 
the process of establishing himself as a reliable Angolan 
businessman.  He maintains close ties with China, returning 
several times a year.  He attended the November 2006 Forum on 
 
LUANDA 00000287  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
China and Africa (FOCAC) business forum, which ran parallel 
to the forum for national leaders.  Angola has also changed 
his perspectives and he is more open to understanding 
cross-cultural differences.  While larger Chinese 
corporations have garnered headlines for their overseas 
investments, Zhang exemplifies a resurgence of an old 
phenomenon, the successful expatriate Chinese businessman. 
EFIRD