China sees increasing utilization of foreign capital
By Du Haitao, Luo Shanshan from People’s Daily
On May 6, Shanghai municipal government issued certificates to 27 foreign companies who have placed their headquarters or research and development centers in Shanghai, including the Apple Inc.’s Greater China unit, Honeywell Automotive Parts Services (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., and Nike China Digital Studio.
On the same day, Beijing Municipal Commerce Bureau released a series of data, indicating that Beijing has actually utilized $1.29 billion in the first quarter of 2019, 3.1 times more from a year before.
45 foreign companies of information transmission, software and information technology and services settled in Beijing during the period, with a year-on-year growth of 50 percent, the bureau said.
Maintaining a strong momentum of high-quality development and making steady progress in opening up, China attraction for foreign investments is being continuously enhanced, as enterprises favor vibrant and open markets in the era of economic globalization.
China’s actual use of foreign capital grew steadily from January to April this year, according to the country’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM).
MOFCOM statistics indicate that a total of 13,039 foreign-invested companies were established in China from January to April, with utilized foreign investment of $45.14 billion (305.24 billion yuan), 6.4 percent higher than that in the same period last year.
At present, China is seeing better-structured foreign capital utilization with sufficient sources and high quality.
In the first four months of 2019, China’s high-tech manufacturing and service industries saw a substantial increase in the actual use of foreign capital.
A total of 33.41 billion yuan of foreign capitals were used in China’s high-tech manufacturing industry, rising by 12.3 percent year on year. The electronic and communication device manufacturing industry, and the computer and office equipment manufacturing industry utilized 38.7 percent and 45.8 percent more of foreign capital respectively. The figure for high-tech service industry stood at 52.48 billion yuan, up 73.4 percent year on year.
Foreign investment from major sources experienced higher growth during the Jan-Apr period. South Korea and Germany invested 114.1 percent and 101.1 percent more in China respectively, and the actual investment from the European Union was up 17.7 percent from a year ago.
Investment from Belt and Road and ASEAN countries maintained a highlight. 437 foreign companies were newly established in China by ASEAN countries in the first quarter, up 33.6 percent, and 1,050 were invested by the Belt and Road countries, up 23.5 percent.
In the first four months, the utilization of foreign capital in central and western China, as well as pilot free trade zones grew steadily. The actual use of foreign direct investment (FDI) in western China reached 21.16 billion yuan, increasing by 9.6 percent, while that in the pilot free trade zones grew by 11.8 percent, accounting for 11.9 percent of the total amount.
China maintained the largest recipient of FDI among developing countries over the last year, despite the continuous slide of the global FDI, said the Global Investment Trend Monitor issued by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTDA).
Bright prospects for domestic consumption and a modestly improved investment environment have helped China remain a top investment destination globally, American Chamber of Commerce in China noted in the 2019 China Business Climate Survey Report.
It’s obvious that the world is confident in investing in China, and China is also showing a stronger attraction to global investment thanks to its development.
The attraction comes from the practical measures adopted by China to expand openness.
The country has expanded market access for foreign investors, strengthened international cooperation in the joint protection of intellectual property rights, and increased imports of commodities and services. Besides, it has also carried out more efficient coordination of international macroeconomic policies and laid more importance on the implementation of the opening up policies. These efforts have been applauded and welcomed by many countries.
The attraction comes from the broader market space of China. With a population of nearly 1.4 billion, China has over eight million university graduates each year, and enjoys the most complete industrial chain and the finest infrastructure in the world. The huge market demands and development potential there are creating more and better opportunities for foreign investors.
The attraction also comes from the constantly improved business environment of China.
The country has further shortened the negative list for foreign investors, removed the administrative examination and approval items, and introduced the foreign direct investment law to enhance protection of foreign investors, making “combination punches” to lift its business environment.
China is working together with other countries to build an open global economy of higher level.
It’s an intensifying competition for all countries to attract foreign direct investments against the backdrop of sluggish growth of global economy and trade, said an official from the MOFCOM.
China should turn the challenges into opportunities by further improving the investment environment and services for foreign investors, so as to take full advantage of China’s large market and infrastructures and create favorable conditions for the effective use of foreign investment, the official added.
