Xi'an, capital city of Northwest China's Shaanxi Province, plans to lure 1.3 billion U.S. dollars of foreign investment in 2006, and 39 billion yuan (4.88 billion U.S. dollars) of domestic investment, according to a source with the city's foreign trade and economic cooperation bureau.

Statistics issued by the Ministry of Commerce show that Xi'an utilized 571 million U.S. dollars of foreign investment in 2005, topping all other capital cities in western China, up 107 percent over the previous year.

An official with the bureau said the bureau will make in-depth research of transnational company's investment requirements, and strive to attract more multinationals to participate in city infrastructure construction.

Besides luring foreign investment, Xi'an has also attached importance to cooperation with other Chinese cities, and will set up exchange mechanism with a number large cities.

Source: Xinhua