Tianjin, the leading port city in north China, set a new record in using direct foreign investment (DFI) in 2004.

As one of the earliest Chinese cities opened to foreign investment, Tianjin obtained a contractual value of 5.59 billion US dollars last year, up 59 percent over the previous year. The

actual amount of investment used in local projects surged 51 percent to 2.47 billion US dollars, an all time high.

Analyzing the characteristics of foreign investment last year, Li Quanshan, director of the Tianjin Municipal Trade Committee, said more than 60 percent of foreign investment had gone to local development zones, bonded zones and high-tech development zones.

The amount of investment in the service trade, high-tech business and projects surpassing 5 million US dollars all increased by a large margin, accounting for 34.5 percent, 32 percent and 75 percent respectively of the total foreign investment, he added.

The export of products made by foreign-funded enterprises is scheduled to make up 82 percent the city's total export, representing a year-on-year increase of 2.5 percent. The annual

profit rate of foreign-funded enterprises should reach seven percent and the rate of tax revenue turned over by the enterprises will grow by 40 percent.

A breakthrough has been achieved in foreign trade as well. The gross import and export value of Tianjin topped 40 billion US dollars last year, up by 36.2 percent. The export grew 40 percent to 20 billion US dollars. Nearly 14.95 billion US dollar-worth products were exported to its major international markets such as the United States, European Union, Japan, the Republic of Korea and Southeast Asia.

Source: Xinhua