Chinese Minister of Commerce Gao Hucheng and EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia
Malmström met in Brussels on October 7, 2015. (Photo: Jennifer Jacquemart,
European Union, 2015 / EC
A report by the Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS) says that Chinese direct investments into Europe increased by 44 percent on the previous year, despite economic troubles in both China and Europe.
Much of the increase can be attributed to the €7.1 bn (US$7.7 bn) acquisition of Italian tire maker Pirelli by state-owned China National Chemical Corp (ChemChina).
Besided the Pirelli deal, most of the Chinese investments in 2015 continued to go to Britain, France and Germany, although countries in Southern and Eastern Europe have started to catch up.
The largest area of investment was the automotive sector, followed by real estate, hospitality, information and communication technology, and financial services, the report says.
China’s outbound foreign direct investments have tripled in just five years, and Europe is likely to remain one to the main destinations for Chinese takeovers in the future too.
Earlier in February, ChemChina bought Swiss pesticide and seed maker Syngenta for US$43bn, in the biggest ever foreign acquisition by a Chinese company.
But while China can be an important source of capital for Europe, the authors of the report warn that increased competition among EU countries for Chinese investments could weaken the EU’s negotiating power with China on key issues, including China’s trade status and a possible EU-China free trade agreement.
gbtimes
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