Chinese investment in India hits $1.06 billion in 2016

Li Yan
0 Comment(s)Print E-mail People's Daily, February 16, 2017
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Tencent has lately led a $55 million series D funding round for India’s Practo, a healthcare startup. This is just China's latest major investment in India, following an investment blowout over the past several years.

China's investment in India hit $1.06 billion in 2016, increasing six-fold from 2015. The country's accumulated direct investment in India exceeded $4.8 billion, up from $2.4 billion prior to 2014, reports said. India has become a hot investment opportunity for Chinese enterprises, according to Li Bojun, economic and commercial counselor for the Chinese embassy in India.

Construction of an industrial park for small and medium-sized enterprises in Gujarat, India will start later this year, according to the general manager of the industrial park, Zhang Xiuge. The industrial park is a key project under the Belt and Road Initiative. Zhang disclosed that the first phase is scheduled to be finished in 2018. A production value of approximately $5 billion will be created when the park opens, Zhang said, adding that over 100 companies are considering whether to enter the park.

Last year, Shanghai Highly (Group) Co., Ltd. finished construction of several factories in India, with a total investment of $718 billion. The factories will produce 2 million air conditioning compressors annually, according to the chairman of the group, Shen Jianfang.

Baosteel, headquartered in Shanghai, has also established its first wholly-owned overseas factory in India, with an investment of $40 million. The plant officially began operation on Jan. 1, 2016, and aims for an annual production capability of 150,000 tons.

In terms of electric power, steel, energy manufacturing and infrastructure, China's investments in India are moving forward steadily.

Chinese mobile phone maker Xiaomi became one of the top three largest smartphone manufacturers in India in 2016, with sales volume surpassing $1 billion, according to the company's India sales manager Ma Du. The company announced plans to build two more plants in India last August.

In addition, Huawei has signed a deal with an Indian electronics manufacturer to manufacture 3 million smartphones by the end of this year. The company has launched the world's largest global service and development centers in the southern Indian city of Bangalore.

Chinese e-commerce companies are also pouring investment in India. Alibaba plans to add another $200 million to fund Paytm, an Indian e-commerce company, according to the Economic Times in India. Similar companies such as Tencent and Baidu have also decided to expand into India.

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