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HK attracts record investment in 2008
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-09-19 11:51

Foreign direct investment (FDI)in Hong Kong in 2008 increased by 15.9 percent year-on-year despite the global downturn, according to a reported released Friday by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.

Hong Kong attracted $63 billion of inward investment last year, making the free trade hub Asia's second largest and the world's seventh largest recipient of foreign direct investment, said the Invest Hong Kong, the investment promotion arm.

Hong Kong also continued to have the highest FDI stock in the Asia-Pacific region, which amounted to nearly $835.8 billion, Invest Hong Kong said, adding that the report reaffirmed Hong Kong's status as a leading destinations for FDI.

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The global financial and economic turmoil had caused FDI inflows to some developed economies to cut by half. Globally, FDI inflows declined 14.1 percent in 2008 from the historic high of $1.98 trillion in 2007.

Simon Galpin, director-general of Investment Promotion at Invest Hong Kong, said he was delighted but recognized that businesses were operating in very tough conditions.

Galpin said he expected investment inflows to Hong Kong to "continue to ... expand in Hong Kong because of our strategic location" as the ideal two-way platform.

The Chinese mainland still ranked first in the Asia-Pacific region in FDI inflows, and has moved up four places to be the world's third largest FDI recipient, attracting $108.3 billion in 2008, which grew 29.7 percent year-on-year.


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