China's ODI ranks among world's top three in 10 consecutive years

China's outbound direct investment (ODI) soared 16.3 percent on an annual basis to reach $178.82 billion in 2021, with the flow scale ranking among the top three in the world for 10 consecutive years, a government statistical bulletin showed.

Photo shows the HPAL production line of the nickel-cobalt project invested and built by Chinese nickel producer Lygend Resource Technology Co., Ltd. on Obi Island in Indonesia. (People's Daily Overseas Edition/courtesy of Lygend Resource Technology Co., Ltd.)

By the end of 2021, the country's ODI stock amounted to $2.79 trillion, ranking among the top three globally for five consecutive years, according to the bulletin recently released by the Ministry of Commerce, the National Bureau of Statistics, and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange.

China's ODI structure continued to improve in 2021. The country's ODI covered 18 industrial categories last year, with investments in leasing and business service, wholesale and retail, manufacturing, finance, as well as transportation/storage and postal service sectors all surpassing $100 billion.

The high retained earnings have driven the rapid growth of ODI. The bulletin showed that the business operations of Chinese enterprises abroad were good in 2021, and over 70 percent of them were profitable or broke even. The re-invested earnings of the same year stood at $99.3 billion, hitting a new record high.

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in 2012, China's accumulated ODI has reached $1.34 trillion, with its global share exceeding over 10 percent for six consecutive years. Chinese enterprises who have invested overseas have paid $368.2 billion in tax to local governments, providing an average of over 2 million jobs every year.

China's ODI flows into a wide range of fields in multiple countries and regions, which will help stabilize the system of the global industrial division of labor, Wan Zhe, a researcher with the Belt and Road School of Beijing Normal University, told People's Daily Overseas Edition.

While going abroad, Chinese enterprises have leveraged their advantages to help boost the development of their investment destinations.

Photo shows the front door of Thailand Polymer Additives Plant of Sennics Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Chinese chemical giant Sinochem Holdings. As the first overseas polymer additives factory of Sinochem Holdings, the plant was put into operation on May 19, 2022. (People's Daily Overseas Edition/courtesy of Sinochem Holdings)

Chinese computer giant Lenovo started the operation of its factory in Hungary on June 14, 2022. The factory can produce more than 1,000 customized servers and 4,000 customized workstations per day.

"The factory is one of Lenovo's largest overseas manufacturing facilities and our first production base in Europe. Given Hungary's unique geographic position and convenient transportation, the factory can help us improve the efficiency of delivering products to European customers," said Guan Wei, senior vice president of Lenovo and head of its global supply chain. Guan added that the factory provides 1,100 jobs directly for people in Hungary.

By taking advantage of the rising demand for nickel, which has been widely used in the production of stainless steel and batteries, thanks to the rapid development of new energy vehicles and consumer electronics in recent years, Chinese nickel producer Lygend Resource Technology Co., Ltd. has invested in two projects in the nickel industry on Obi Island in Indonesia since 2018.

The company has invested $2 billion, over 18 percent of its total planned investment, in Indonesia, offering 14,000 jobs to local people. Over the past years, the company has turned the barren island into a huge production base.

"Indonesia boasts rich nickel resources but lacks abilities for the exploration, processing and utilization of the resources, which provides an opportunity for our company's production capacity cooperation," said Cai Jianyong, chairman of the company.