Foreign companies pulled more money from China last quarter, a sign that some investors are still pessimistic even as Beijing rolls out stimulus measures aimed at stabilizing growth.
China’s direct investment liabilities in its balance of payments dropped US$8.1 billion in the third quarter, data released by the Chinese State Administration of Foreign Exchange showed on Friday. The gauge, which measures foreign direct investment (FDI) in China, was down almost US$13 billion for the first nine months of the year.
Foreign investment into China has slumped in the past three years after hitting a record in 2021, a casualty of geopolitical tensions, pessimism about the world’s second-largest economy and stronger competition from Chinese domestic firms in industries such as cars. Should the decline continue for the rest of the year, it would be the first annual net outflow in FDI since at least 1990, when comparable data begins.
Photo: Reuters
Companies that have pulled back some China operations this year include automakers Nissan Motor Co and Volkswagen AG, along with others such as Konica Minolta Inc.
Nippon Steel Corp in July said it was exiting a joint venture in China, while International Business Machines Corp said it is shutting down a hardware research team in the country, a decision affecting about 1,000 employees.
The prospect of an expanded trade war and deteriorating relations with Beijing during US president-elect Donald Trump’s second term might further weigh on investment.
“Geopolitical tension” is the topmost concern for members of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, group chair Allan Gabor said.
“It makes it difficult to plan big investments, but on the contrary, we see a lot of members making small and medium-sized investments,” Gabor said in an interview with Bloomberg TV last week during the China International Import Expo. “It’s a much more surgical investment environment.”
Still, government efforts in late September to stimulate the economy have already benefited one group of foreign investors, with the value of stocks held by foreigners jumping more than 26 percent from August,
China’s central bank data showed. The Chinese benchmark stock index gained almost 21 percent in September after the start of a coordinated stimulus effort, although it has since given up some of those gains.
By contrast, outbound investment from China has been rising sharply. In the third quarter, Chinese firms increased their overseas assets by about US$34 billion, Chinese State Administration of Foreign Exchange data showed.
Outflows so far this year reached US$143 billion, the third-highest total on record for the period. That is likely to continue and expand as more countries put tariffs on Chinese exports.
PROVOCATIVE: Chinese Deputy Ambassador to the UN Sun Lei accused Japan of sending military vessels to deliberately provoke tensions in the Taiwan Strait China denounced remarks by Japan and the EU about the South China Sea at a UN Security Council meeting on Monday, and accused Tokyo of provocative behavior in the Taiwan Strait and planning military expansion. Ayano Kunimitsu, a Japanese vice foreign minister, told the Council meeting on maritime security that Tokyo was seriously concerned about the situation in the East China and South China seas, and reiterated Japan’s opposition to any attempt to change the “status quo” by force, and obstruction of freedom of navigation and overflight. Stavros Lambrinidis, head of the EU delegation to the UN, also highlighted South China Sea
The final batch of 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks purchased from the US arrived at Taipei Port last night and were transported to the Armor Training Command in Hsinchu County’s Hukou Township (湖口), completing the military’s multi-year procurement of 108 of the tanks. Starting at 12:10am today, reporters observed more than a dozen civilian flatbed trailers departing from Taipei Port, each carrying an M1A2T tank covered with black waterproof tarps. Escorted by military vehicles, the convoy traveled via the West Coast Expressway to the Armor Training Command, with police implementing traffic control. The army operates about 1,000 tanks, including CM-11 Brave Tiger
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said it expects its 2-nanometer (2nm) chip capacity to grow at a compound annual rate of 70 percent from this year to 2028. The projection comes as five fabs begin volume production of 2-nanometer chips this year — two in Hsinchu and three in Kaohsiung — TSMC senior vice president and deputy cochief operating officer Cliff Hou (侯永清) said at the company’s annual technology symposium in Silicon Valley, California, last week. Output in the first year of 2-nanometer production, which began in the fourth quarter of last year, is expected to
Taiwan’s drone exports surged past US$100 million in the first quarter, exceeding last year’s full-year total, with the Czech Republic emerging as the largest buyer, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said. Exports of complete drones reached US$115.85 million in the period, about 1.2 times the total recorded for all of last year, the ministry said in a report. Exports to the Czech Republic accounted for about US$100 million, far outpacing other markets. Poland, last year’s top destination, recorded about US$11.75 million in the first quarter. Taiwan’s drone exports have expanded rapidly in the past few years, with last year’s total
RSS