Beijing encourages outbound investment

In an apparent change of tack, Chinese government officials are once again encouraging Chinese firms to invest overseas, the South China Morning Post reported. While China has been engaged in a widespread natural resource acquisition spree, investments unrelated to national economic strategy have been discouraged by leaders such as Vice Premier Wang Qishan, who warned companies to be cautious when investing abroad. However, on Monday the Ministry of Commerce said in a statement on its website that overseas investments are now attractive and investment costs are falling. The State Administration of Foreign Exchange, one of the institutions charged with approving overseas investments, announced on the same day that it will ease its approval process and expand foreign exchange reserves available for investment abroad. The National Social Security Fund, China’s national pension fund, now said it is seeking cabinet approval for billions of dollars in planned investments in foreign private equity funds.