US businesses call for unimpeded Chinese FDI

Washington faces pressure to avoid discouraging potential investors

The US private sector is calling for a consistent political commitment from Washington to clear the way for direct investment from China, which is projected to hit $400 billion by 2020.

The US business community agrees that current setbacks encountered by the telecom companies Huawei Technologies Co Ltd and ZTE Corp will only be temporary, as long as the US government stops sending contradictory signals that might deter Chinese investors in the long run.

In the first three quarters of 2012, Chinese firms completed investment transactions worth $6.3 billion, setting the stage for a record year for outbound investment to the US, according to a latest report compiled by the non-profit group Asia Society and research company Rhodium Group.

Chinese direct investment has the potential to contribute to a more balanced bilateral commercial relationship and the strengthening of US-China ties, said Brenda Foster, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai.

Daniel Rosen, Rhodium cofounder, said: More importantly, Chinese investment helps create new jobs in a much more profound way than official statistics show.

Rosen said at least 30,000 people have benefited from new posts set up by Chinese companies in the country. That figure is five times higher than records from government agencies.

But the many problems of Chinese investments in the US are not about how companies manage human resources or deal with supply chains. Instead, they are about the macro-policy environment, Rosen said.

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