UK diplomat expects Chinese outward investments to surge

The Union Jack and the Chinese national flag flutter on a lamppost in fornt of the Tiananmen Rostrum next to the Tiananmen Square in Beijing. [File photo/icpress]

In recent years, there has been explosive growth in Chinese investment into the United Kingdom, with investors from a wide range of sectors trying to expand their footprints in the West, said Sebastian Wood, the British ambassador to China, on Tuesday.

Wood said that the recent surge in Chinese investment in the UK is very encouraging, but it is the potential for sustained growth in the future that is more significant.

"As China's development moves into a new era, the fit between UK's strength and China's needs will be seamless. There is potential for even more rapid growth," he said.

According to data from China's Ministry of Commerce, the UK was the fourth most popular destination for Chinese investment in 2012 at $2.8 billion, up from eighth in 2011 and 21st in 2010.

Wood made his remarks at the launch of a guidebook for Chinese enterprises investing in the UK that was produced by a think tank affiliated with the National Development and Reform Commission and had the support of the British embassy in Beijing. It is the first guidebook for Chinese companies looking to invest overseas.

Zhang Jianping, who led the research project that produced the guidebook, said: "The UK investment environment is extremely attractive to foreign investors. The predictable and well-established legal and regulatory systems, the open market and its talent pool makes the country a popular destination for Chinese investors to tap into European market."