Chinese Enterprises "Going Global"

To implement¹ "Going Global" strategy, encourage and support enterprises of different ownership and with conditions to invest overseas and engage in transnational business, and positively² take part in various forms of international economic and technological³ cooperation were important measures in the new stage of China's opening up. During the Tenth Five-year Planning, China launched and implemented⁴ the strategy of "Going Global", strongly pushing forward foreign economic cooperation and made remarkable⁵ achievements.

　　During the Tenth Five-year Planning, direct investment overseas (hereinafter referred to as non-financial investment) realized leaping-over increase. From 2002 to 2005, total net investment amounted to US$17.9 billion with an annual average increase of 36%; From 2001 to 2005, total turnover⁶ of overseas project contracting were US$72.6 billion and the annual average increase rate was 24%, 100% higher than that in the Ninth Five-year Planning; At the end of 2005, total 560 thousand labors⁸ were dispatched overseas, 125 thousand more than that in the Ninth Five-year Planning. By the end of the Tenth Five-year Planning, overseas direct investment exceeded US$50 billion, number of overseas Chinese investment enterprises was more than 10 thousand, contract value of overseas project contracting were US$181.1 billion and turnover US$135.3 billion. Contract value of overseas labor⁷ service cooperation were US$40.1 billion and turnover US$34.8 billion, number of laborers⁹ dispatched were 3.45 million.

　　An all-dimensional and wide-ranging pattern of "Going Global" gradually formed. During the Tenth Five-year Planning, economic and cooperation overseas, such as overseas investment, project contracting and labor service cooperation spread over 200 countries and regions and formed a diversified¹⁰ market pattern with characters of basing on Asia, developing Africa, exploiting Europe, America, Latin America and South Pacific Ocean. Economic cooperation overseas was exploited mainly in fields of industrial manufacture, construction, petrol chemical industry, resources development, transportation, electronic communication, commercial service and agriculture, and extensively covered other fields of national economy like environmental protection, aviation and aerospace¹¹, peaceful utilization¹² of nuclear energy, tourism, catering¹³ and consultation¹⁴ service etc. Advantages of Chinese eastern and coastal¹⁵ provinces to go global were comparatively obvious, and central, western and northeast China and border provinces expedited to go out.

　　Forms of "Going Global" tended to be various and level improved gradually. During the Tenth Five-year Planning, overseas direct investment developed from Greenfield investment to cross-border merger¹⁶ and acquisition. Average overseas investment for single project increased from US$2.81 million in 2002 to US$4.48 million in 2004. Cross-border merger and acquisition became the major form of overseas direct investment.

　　More and more operation entities¹⁷ went global and benefits brought to big enterprises were obvious. During the Tenth Five-year Planning, there were more than 30 thousand enterprises engaging in transnational business, over 1800 enterprises in overseas project contracting and more than 600 enterprises in overseas labor service cooperation. Big state-owned enterprises maintained playing the leading role.

　　Function of "Going Global" strategy on development of national economy and foreign relations was enhanced day after day. Through "Going Global" several overseas production bases of crude oil and minerals resources were set up and guaranteed the supply of oil and gas, minerals resources, timber and fishing for national economic and social development. To implement "Going Global" strategy played a remarkable role to relieve conflict of domestic resources shortage, to promote adjustment of industrial structure, to enlarge exports, to provide more employment opportunities and to enhance the friendly cooperation relations.

　　To implement "Going Global" strategy had a remarkable effect on polity promotion¹⁸. During the Tenth Five-year Planning, in order to carry out "Going Global" strategy, China made a series of policies and measures to develop overseas investment, constructed project and labor service cooperation in financing and tax, insurance, credit and foreign exchange, deepened reform of management system, put forward facilitation of "Going Global" and primarily set up systems of promotion, service, guarantee and supervision for foreign economic cooperation