China’s FDI inflow continued to fall in August, down 14% y-o-y

BEIJING - Foreign direct investment (FDI) into the Chinese mainland dropped 14% in August from a year earlier, settling at US$7.2 billion, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) announced on Tuesday. The fall follows a 17% drop in July—the lowest volume in nearly five years.

For the first eight months, FDI, which excludes investment in the financial sector, stood at US$78.24 billion, down 1.8% from the same period last year. FDI in the manufacturing sector dropped 15.7%, accounting for 35% of the total.

While some see this as an indication of investors’ increasing cautiousness in the Chinese economy, an MOC spokesman stated, “We are still analysing related investment and trade flows; currently there are no abnormal changes.” Meanwhile, China’s outbound direct investment by non-financial firms surged 112.1% to US$12.62 billion, according to the Ministry. www.webershandwick.cn (ATI).