“If these companies are really resistant to working with China, they would not make such decisions,” said Jiang, who is now president of the China Society of Industrial Economics, an academic organisation under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS).
“We must see China has grown to compete with other middle to high-end manufacturing powers in the world, and everything we are experiencing now is a normal state of market competition.”
Jiang’s optimism, however, has yet to be reflected in Chinese economic data. The numbers show both foreign direct investment and exports have continued to slump despite encouraging signs in the third quarter.
Capital outflow pressures have been mounting as a slowing global economy and US-China rivalry fuel investor worries. The country reported its first-ever quarterly deficit in foreign direct investment (FDI) since the data started being recorded in 1998. A focus on national security and revamped anti-espionage legislation have also fuelled doubts about the investment environment, compounding the problem further.
Exports also continue to drop as Western governments call for a “de-risking” of supply chains from a perceived overreliance on China.
Customs figures showed a fall of 6.4 per cent in October from the year before, a greater plunge than the already steep 6.2 per cent decline observed in September.
Beijing has attempted to find a silver lining, highlighting the fact China remains a magnet for global investors with all-time high FDI flows of 1 trillion yuan (US$137.3 billion) in the first nine months of the year.
Zhang Ming, deputy director of CASS’ Institute of Finance and Banking, also spoke at the forum in Beijing and echoed Jiang’s view that the current trend of “short-term foreign investment” outflows could change next year.
“Many multinational companies do not have an alternative market, and those markets also have their own problems,” Zhang said.
“China’s economy is showing signs of rebound and we are trying to improve our investment environment, so there could be improvement in FDI next year.”