China News Service:

In 2022, China's utilized foreign investment expanded by 6.3% year on year, hitting an all-time high. How does MOFCOM view the country's overall performance in attracting foreign investment last year? What do you expect the situation to be this year? Thank you.

Meng Huating:

Thank you for your attention to our work involving foreign investment in China. In 2022, China's attraction to foreign investment was affected by multiple negative factors, such as the spread of COVID-19, slowing global growth, and surging investment protectionism. MOFCOM has resolutely implemented the decisions and plans of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council. It has also worked with other departments and local governments to make solid progress in attracting foreign investment. The volume of foreign investment in China has increased, and its composition and quality have been improved. We have therefore made an active contribution to maintaining stable macroeconomic performance. Throughout the year, China's attraction to foreign investment has shown five features:

First, the scale of foreign investment reached a new record high. On the basis of double-digit growth in 2021, foreign investment continued to maintain stable growth in 2022, and the actual use of foreign investment exceeded 1.2 trillion yuan for the first time as calculated in RMB, with a year-on-year increase of 6.3%, according to comparable standards. If calculated in US dollars, the utilized foreign investment reached $189.13 billion, an increase of 8%, and the scale of investment attraction remained at the forefront of the world.

Second, foreign investment into the manufacturing industry increased significantly. The industry's actual use of foreign capital was 323.7 billion yuan, up 46.1% year on year. In particular, thanks to the lifting of market access restrictions on foreign investment, foreign investment in the automobile manufacturing industry increased by 263.8%. In addition, the attracted investment in computer and communication manufacturing and pharmaceutical manufacturing increased by 67.3% and 57.9%, respectively.

Third, the high-tech industry became an important source of growth. The industry utilized 444.95 billion yuan of foreign investment, up 28.3%, driving the further improvement of the quality of foreign investment. Among them, the investment in the high-tech manufacturing industry and high-tech service industry increased by 49.6% and 21.9%, respectively. In addition to computer and communication manufacturing and pharmaceutical manufacturing mentioned just now, foreign investment in the services for applying scientific and technological achievements, and services for R&D and design also achieved rapid growth, with the growth rate reaching 35% and 26.4% respectively.

Fourth, investments from major sources increased generally. South Korea, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Japan increased their investments by 64.2%, 52.9%, 40.7%, and 16.1%, respectively. Meanwhile, from a regional perspective, investments in China by the EU, countries along the Belt and Road, and ASEAN increased by 92.2%, 17.2%, and 8.2%, respectively.

Fifth, China's eastern, central, and western regions attracted more investment in full force. The actual use of foreign capital in the eastern, central, and western regions increased by 4.7%, 21.9%, and 14.1%, respectively. Among the eastern provinces, Jiangsu province attracted foreign investment of nearly 200 billion yuan; Guangdong province, Shanghai municipality, Shandong province, Zhejiang province, and Beijing municipality each attracted more than 100 billion yuan. Among the central and western provinces, foreign investment in Shanxi, Henan, Guangxi, Hunan, and Shaanxi increased by 229.6%, 119.8%, 49.1%, 41.3%, and 33.6%, respectively. It should be noted that the potential for attracting foreign investment in the central and western regions has been further unleashed.

At present, the situation faced by China in attracting foreign investment is still very complex and severe. World economic growth is sluggish, and various adverse factors are still brewing. A report published by the UNCTAD last month pointed out that global transnational investment will face huge downward pressure in 2023. But at the same time, we are aware that the fundamentals sustaining China's steady and long-term economic growth remain unchanged, and the comprehensive advantage composed of a super-large-scale market, a complete industrial system, rich human resources, and a continuously optimized business environment are being constantly strengthened to attract investment. The majority of foreign investors still have a strong desire to invest in China. We are confident that we will continue to achieve new great results in attracting foreign investment in 2023, promote the "quantity" growth and "quality" improvement of foreign investment, and better help to foster a new development pattern and promote high-quality development. Thank you!