Abstract
China will encourage foreigners to invest more in service sector and
high-tech companies in 2007 while strictly restricting overseas investment
in real estate projects, according to guidelines on foreign investment
recently issued by the Ministry of Commerce for 2007.
The administrative rules for the current year say local governments
and related departments should pay more attention to the quality
of use of foreign investment.
According to the guidelines, foreign investment should be channeled
into high-tech, modern service and high-end manufacturing sectors
and into research and development, energy-efficient and environmental-friendly
projects.
In 2007 China will continue to channel foreign investment into technical
upgrading projects for traditional industries and encourage transnational
companies to establish regional headquarters and launch procurement,
distribution, operation and training centers on the Chinese mainland.
The guidelines require that overseas resources should be utilized
to expand domestic capital markets and foreigners' strategic investment
in Chinese listed companies should be regulated. Foreign investors'
cooperation with peers from China's non-state sector will be facilitated.
Meanwhile, the guidelines stress that foreign investment should be
strictly restricted in real estate sector and low-standard projects
with high energy consumption and serious pollution.
The guidelines also say that healthy development of mergers and acquisitions
by foreign investors should be promoted, and that monopoly-targeted
and malicious takeovers be prevented so as to maintain the nation's
control over strategic sectors and ensure national economic security.
According to the Ministry of Commerce, in 2006 China approved establishment
of 41,485 overseas-funded enterprises, down 5.76 percent from 2005,
and used 69.5 billion USD in foreign capital, down 4.06 percent.
The ministry said under China's macro economic control scheme, no
foreign investment projects in the overheated steel, cement and electrolysed
aluminum sectors have been approved since 2005.
Meanwhile, more foreign capital flowed to the high-tech telecom equipment
manufacturing and computer production sectors in 2006. The telecom
equipment sector recorded a 61.4 percent growth in foreign capital
actually used, while the computer sector, a 48.63 percent growth.
The ministry said foreign-funded firms performed well in China and
contributed significantly to the nation's economy.
In the first 11 months of in 2006, they realized 937.5 billion USD
in foreign trade, up 25.5 percent. The volume, accounting for 58
percent of the nation's total, included 509.6 billion USD in export
value, up 27.9 percent.
Users
Please
log in to take part in the discussion (add own reviews or comments).