Growth of Chinese investments in Europe after the global economic crisis of 2008-2009

For a long time China was viewed as a typical host country in international capital flows. Long-term rapid economic growth and trade surpluses produced quick accumulation of capital in China which has led to increasing capital flows abroad from public and private companies. When amid the global economic crisis of 2008-2009 domestic investment declined in many economically developed countries, Chinese investments stepped into their domestic investment markets to fill the void. The aim of this paper is to document the growth of Chinese investment in Europe, and to identify the main factors behind this growth. The paper also analyses geographical distribution of Chinese investments in Europe with particular emphasis on Central Europe.