Stephen Green is emphatic. The HSBC chairman argues that there is simply no country more strategically important to his business than China. Given HSBC's roots and geographic bias, that is no surprise. But for any British company with global ambitions, it is nowadays regarded as plain reckless to ignore such a vast and fast-growing market. For that reason, Gordon Brown's planeful of business leaders, which touches down in Beijing early this morning, is significant.

It is good that the party contains some heavyweights - such as Arun Sarin of Vodafone, Marcus Agius of Barclays, David Brennan of AstraZeneca and Philip Yea of 3i. The flummery, formality and endless banqueting inevitable in such visits can be hard-going, but they are part of the uncomfortable journey towards winning friends and contracts in China.

The conventional wisdom is that Britain has missed out in China and squandered its inheritance. Despite the advantage of running Hong Kong for a century-and-a-half, it seems to be no better placed than any of its big European competitors. Germany, France and Italy all boast bigger exports to China.

But such comparisons may not be fair. In the past it has been capital goods that China has thirsted for, while services - Britain's strength - have taken a back seat. That should start to change as Beijing eases off exports and thinks more about domestic consumption.

On investment in China, British firms have a stronger story to tell. HSBC, in spite of some scepticism, is at the forefront. Its $5 billion worth of stakes in Chinese banks has grown to $40 billion in just a few years, while its company-managed network in China doubled profits in 2006 and looks set for another leap in 2007.

A common complaint is that China has put obstacles in the way of Western firms, and there are some shocking examples of protectionism. It is dotty, for example, that Western law firms aren't allowed to hire domestically trained locals.

But the general direction of policy is encouraging. HSBC, for example, says the only obstacle to the speed at which it can roll out new branches is not the the approval process but merely the pace at which it can hire new recruits and find suitable premises. That's in sharp contrast to India, where the regulatory hurdles are legion.

The investment by Chinese sovereign wealth funds in foreign financial institutions symbolises China's coming of age.

Beijing is not just happy to do business with the bastions of Western capitalism but to part-own them too.

The opening up of the Shanghai stock exchange to foreign companies would be an equally symbolic moment. And it would be a coup for Mr Green - and for Mr Brown - if HSBC was first with a listing.

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