Outbound investment 'sensitive' list to expand

The nation's top economic regulatory body will specify sensitive industries to further curb "irrational" outbound investment, while expanding the green light for nonsensitive projects, according to a draft guideline issued on Friday.

An official from the National Development and Reform Commission, who asked not to be named, told China Daily the country will not loosen its grip on proper regulation of irrational and unauthentic investment behavior. The official declined to comment on whether the move represents a major policy shift in regulating outbound investment.

Analysts said the move is aimed at improving the quality of the country's outbound investment. Previously, some enterprises invested in overseas projects that were not business-savvy or got involved in dubious overseas deals that were suspected of constituting money-laundering.