City's paid-in foreign investment hit record US$ 22.551 billion in 2021

Paid-in foreign investment in Shanghai topped a record US$22.551 billion in 2021, a surge of 11.5 percent year on year.

The robust foreign investment growth also saw increases in contract value and the number of newly established foreign enterprises. A total of 6,708 new enterprises were set up in the city, up 16.6 percent year on year. Contract value was US$60.391 billion, a 16.9 percent rise.

The data was presented at an investment conference organized by the city government.

The actual use of foreign capital in the commercial services industry was US$7.604 billion, rocketing 38 percent from a year earlier, while that in the high-tech services sector – predominantly information services, research and development and technical services – reached US$6.569 billion, an increase of 11 percent.

Also, the city attracted an extra 60 regional headquarters and 25 R&D centers of multinational enterprises, lifting the totals to 831 and 506.

Adding to the city's appeal are its constant efforts to optimize the investment environment.

As an example, Meiji (China) Investment Co said Meiji Group's new ice-cream factory project in Songjiang District passed the filing and approval process in less than a working day after it submitted the filing application through the city's online approval and supervision platform.

Nationally, the total amount of foreign capital actually used in China (excluding banking, securities and the insurance sectors) was about 1.15 trillion yuan (US$180.68 billion), jumping 14.9 percent year on year (or up US$173.48 billion in dollar terms, up 20.2 percent), according to data released by the Ministry of Commerce on Thursday.

By sector, the actual use of foreign capital in services was 906.49 billion yuan, up 16.7 percent. And that in high-tech industries rose 17.1 percent year on year – with high-tech manufacturing up 10.7 percent and high-tech services soaring 19.2 percent.

Investment from countries and regions along the "Belt and Road" and the Association of South East Asian Nations jumped by 29.4 percent and 29 percent.