Foreign investment in China at a high level
With a population of over 1.4 billion and a middle-income group of over 400 million, China is a large market with the most potential in the world and a strong attraction for international investors. The Chinese economy continues to grow, creating opportunities for companies from all over the world.
In 2023, 53,766 foreign-invested enterprises were newly established in China, an increase of 39.7 percent year-on-year. The actual use of foreign capital was 1.13 trillion yuan, which was still high in scale. The actual use of foreign capital in high-tech manufacturing increased by 6.5 percent year-on-year. High-tech industries attracted 423.34 billion yuan, accounting for 37.3 percent of the total amount of actually used foreign capital, which was 1.2 percentage points of growth over 2022, and a record high.
Jointly build the Belt and Road and share the fruits
2023 marks the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative. Over the past decade, the Belt and Road Initiative had become an important international public good, opening up a development path leading to common prosperity for all partner countries.
In 2023, the trade volume of goods between China and partner countries reached 19.5 trillion yuan, an increase of 2.8 percent from a year earlier, and the proportion of China's trade with partner countries in China's total foreign trade increased by 1.2 percentage points to 46.6 percent from 2022.
In 2023, China's turnover of contracted projects in energy conservation and environmental protection in partner countries increased by 28.3 percent year-on-year.
In the same year, 23 memorandums of investment cooperation were signed in green, digital and blue economy fields between China and partners countries.
As an important facilitator of the Belt and Road Initiative, China-Europe Railway Express has become a major international transport artery running through the Eurasian continent. In 2023, 17,000 China-Europe freight train trips were operated and 1.9 million twenty-foot equivalent units were shipped, up 6 percent and 18 percent year-on-year, respectively.
By 2023, China-Europe Railway Express reached more than 200 cities in 25 European countries, with a transport service network covering the entire continent, ensuring the stability of the international industrial and supply chains.
In 2023, China signed bilateral currency swap agreements with 20 Belt and Road partner countries, and established RMB clearing arrangements in 17 countries involved in the initiative, effectively promoting trade and investment facilitation.
