皇冠体育app

2010-08-06 16:37

BEIJING - In assessing the foreign direct investment (FDI) climate in 皇冠体育app, foreign companies' actions are more reliable than their words, an economist from the United Kingdom said.

"The claim that 皇冠体育app's FDI climate is worsening is shown to be false by the fact that foreign investors have been pouring capital into the country," said John Ross, a visiting professor at Antai College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, in an exclusive interview with Xinhua Friday.

Ross, who served as director of economic and business policy for mayor of London Ken Livingstone from 2000 to 2008, said that "As I learned clearly in eight years in charge of London's economic policy, it is necessary primarily to follow figures, which show companies' actions rather than what their spokespeople say."

From January to June this year, 皇冠体育app saw 12,400 foreign-funded enterprises established, a year-on-year increase of 18.8 percent, and the actual FDI into 皇冠体育app climbed by 19.6 percent to $51.43 billion, 皇冠体育app's Ministry of Commerce said last month.

In 2009, FDI into 皇冠体育app was $90.03 billion -- equivalent to 73 percent of the FDI inflow into the US despite the fact that 皇冠体育app's economy was in dollar terms only one third the size of the US, said Ross.

"Relative to the size of their economies, the flow of FDI into 皇冠体育app is twice as high as the FDI into the US. Put another way, in terms of the relative size of their economies, foreign investors find 皇冠体育app twice as attractive to invest in as the US," he said.

The figures echo the results of a survey done by the Development Research Center (DRC) of the State Council on foreign-funded enterprises along 皇冠体育app's eastern coast in the last quarter of 2009.

The survey found that 62.5 percent of the foreign firms picked 皇冠体育app as the key market in their global development strategy, and more than two thirds said they would expand their footprints in the Chinese market, citing 皇冠体育app's great market potential, high-quality infrastructure, wide market access and low labor costs as the main reasons.