Foreign investment into China rose 8 percent in the first half as mergers and acquisitions (M by overseas companies more than quadrupled in value, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said on Tuesday.
Foreign direct investment (FDI), which excludes financial sectors, totaled US$68.41 billion during the January-to-June period, the ministry said.
“Both the proportion and the transaction value of foreign mergers and acquisitions increased sharply,” it said in a statement.
It gave the value of mergers and acquisitions activity at US$13.19 billion, a gain of 336.5 percent from the same period last year, while its proportion of total FDI ballooned from 4.8 percent to 19.3 percent.
“With the increase of China’s land prices and other costs, many companies are now investing in the country in the form of mergers and acquisitions,” Ministry of Commerce spokesman Shen Danyang (沈丹陽) said.
Shen did not provide details on any individual deals in China.
Last month, FDI growth slowed sharply to 1.1 percent, after a 7.8 percent year-on-year rise in May.
The ministry also said that overseas direct investment (ODI) from China rose 29.2 percent to US$56 billion in the first half. It did not provide data for last month alone.
China drew a total of US$119.6 billion of FDI last year, up 1.7 percent, while ODI was up 14.1 percent at US$102.9 billion, passing the US$100 billion mark for the first time as Chinese companies eye opportunities abroad as domestic growth slows.
In the January-to-June period, investment from the 28-member EU into China rose 13.7 percent to US$4.08 billion, the ministry said.
Investment from France rose 46.9 percent to US$660 million.
From Japan — with which China is in disputes over territory and wartime history — it fell 16.3 percent to US$2.01 billion.
It also fell sharply from the US, dropping 37.6 percent to US$1.09 billion, the figures showed.
Hong Kong is by far the biggest investor in China, accounting for US$50.69 billion in the first half. It showed a gain of 15.6 percent during the period.
FDI growth has slowed in recent years owing to factors including rising costs, competition from Southeast Asian countries and concerns over official investigations into foreign companies.
At the same time China’s acquisition of foreign assets, particularly energy and resources, has increased with firms encouraged to invest abroad to gain market access and international experience.
Outbound investment from China into the US rose 30.1 percent in the first six months, but gained just 1.9 percent into the EU, the ministry said, without giving totals.
The ASEAN group of Southeast Asian countries saw investment from China rise by 92.9 percent, the ministry said, while that to Hong Kong gained 71.8 percent.
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