This aerial photo taken on July 4, 2022 shows the Volkswagen Anhui MEB (Modular Electric Drive Matrix) plant under construction in the Hefei area of the pilot free trade zone (FTZ) in east China's Anhui Province. (Xinhua)
BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Optimistic about the Chinese economy, some foreign-funded enterprises recently launched a number of projects in China, aiming to expand business presence in the country, the Xinhua-run China Securities Journal reported.
German automobile giant Volkswagen Group on Tuesday announced its plan to invest about 7.5 billion yuan in a new development, innovation and procurement center of intelligent connected electric vehicles in Hefei, capital of east China's Anhui Province.
On the same day, Scott, an automation company from New Zealand, initiated a new plant located in Qingdao city, east China's Shandong Province. The new plant is designed to have comprehensive capabilities such as processing, quality inspection and warehousing, and production lines for household appliance facilities including washing machine boxes, refrigerator side panels, and water heater shells. Once operational, it is expected to create an annual output of over 80 million yuan.
On April 12, a catalyst production base of Swiss chemicals company Clariant in Jiaxing, east China's Zhejiang Province with an investment of nearly 610 million yuan was put into service. It is Clariant's third catalyst factory in China.
Multinational companies seeking to outperform peers in the global chemical industry must attach great importance to the Chinese market, said Conrad Keijzer, CEO of Clariant.
He added that the company has also invested about 760 million yuan in building two flame retardant production lines in Huizhou city of Guangdong.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Chinese mainland, in actual use, expanded 4.9 percent year on year in the first three months of the year, according to the Ministry of Commerce.
Foreign investment in China continues increasing on last year's high base. This shows that China remains one of the most attractive investment destinations globally, Meng Wei, spokesperson for the National Development and Reform Commission, told a press conference.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) earlier predicted that with robust rebound of private consumption, China is set to account for around one third of global economic growth in 2023. Against the backdrop of overall decline in global foreign investment, the resilient Chinese economy becomes the key for foreign enterprises to scale up spending in the country. (Edited by Su Dan with Xinhua Silk Road, sudan@xinhua.org)
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