Outward Foreign Direct Investment from China and its Policy Context

This document reveals that, since 2000, China's outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) has grown at an accelerating rate as a result of a switch in government policy to strong encouragement of Chinese enterprises to "go global." The bulk of this investment has been into the primary and tertiary sectors, with relatively little going into manufacturing so far. Most has gone to Asia, but Chinese investment is now spreading throughout the world. The precise geographical distribution is veiled, as much of it passes through tax havens. The Government has been slow to tackle administrative obstacles to Chinese companies wishing to invest abroad, but has recently begun to relax them. The global crisis has presented opportunities for Chinese multinationals, which were less seriously affected than their counterparts in the developed world, to raise their stake in the world economy.