China’s actual use of foreign direct investment plunged to 7.541 billion USD in January this year, down by 32.67 percent year-on-year, announced Yao Jian, spokesperson of the Ministry of Commerce, in a press conference held in Beijing on February 16, 2009.

Yao said that due to the impact of the global financial crisis, to an unusually high level in the same month last year, and to the effect of the Spring Festival Golden Week, there was a decline in FDI China received in January 2009 compared to the same month last year. However, actual FDI use in January was around the average monthly level of 7.699 billion USD in 2008, higher than the average monthly actual use of 6.166 billion USD in FDI since the global financial crisis intensified in September 2008. Yao also added that 1,496 foreign-funded enterprises were approved and established in China in January 2009, down by 48.73 percent year-on-year. By the end of January 2009, China had approved and established a total of 661,296 foreign-funded enterprises, with an actual use of 862.951 billion USD in FDI. In 2008, total actual use of FDI (including the finance sector) in China reached 108.3 billion USD, an increase of 29.7 percent year-on-year.

By People's Daily Online