China's FDI rose to USD 122 billion in first 11 months

BEIJING: China's foreign direct investment rose by 9.8 percent year on year to reach 803.62 billion yuan (around USD 122 billion) in the first 11 months, the Commerce Ministry said today.

The FDI growth was much faster than the 1.9 percent year on year increase registered in the first 10 months.

In November alone, the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) hit 124.92 billion yuan, up 90.7 percent year on year, Ministry of Commerce (MOC) spokesperson Gao Feng said.

The growth rate was dramatically higher compared with October when the country's FDI rose by 5 per cent year on year, the Ministry said.

The FDI in the service sector posted strong growth while the manufacturing industry continued to rise.

In the first 11 months, the FDI in the service sector climbed 13.5 per cent year on year to 582.75 billion yuan or 72.5 per cent of the total, the Ministry said.

The FDI increased by 9.8 per cent year on year to reach 803.62 billion yuan (around USD 122 billion) in the first 11 months, it said.

China's non-financial Outbound Direct Investment (ODI) from January to November fell by 33.5 per cent year on year as authorities curbed irrational investment overseas, it added.

Chinese investors spent a total of USD 107.55 billion on 5,796 enterprises from 174 countries and regions during the period.

The decline narrowed from 40.9 per cent drop for the first 10 months this year, Gao said, adding that "irrational outbound investment has been further curbed".

China's ODI has seen rapid growth in recent years.

Noting an "irrational tendency" in outbound investment, Chinese authorities have set stricter rules and advised companies to make investment decisions more carefully since last year.

Investment in the first 11 months mainly went to leasing and commercial services, manufacturing, wholesale and retail, and information technology sectors, the Ministry statement said.

No new projects were reported in property, sports or entertainment.

Meanwhile, ODI to countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative has been encouraged, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

From January to November, China's non-financial ODI in countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative continued to expand, totalling USD 12.37 billion, the Ministry said.

The Belt and Road deals accounted for 11.5 per cent of the total investments, up from 8.3 per cent of all deals a year ago, it added.

China's ambitious Belt and Road initiative aims to link Beijing with markets in Europe and Africa through Asian countries and the Indian Ocean.

India opposes one of the projects under the initiative as it runs through Gilgit and Baltistan in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The USD 46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor links China's restive Xinjiang region to the southern Pakistani port Gwadar, built with Chinese funding. The port could potentially be used as a naval outpost for the Chinese military.