Korea Becomes Top Foreign Investor to China

Korea has become the leading foreign investor in China during the first quarter.

The Korea International Trade Association on Monday said Korea's investments in China totaled US$1.62 billion in the first three months, the largest foreign investment excluding Hong Kong.

Taiwan came in second with $1.29 billion, followed by Singapore with $1.23 billion. Japan, the previous No. 1 investor, invested $1.06 billion in the first quarter.

Choi Yong-min at KITA said, "Japan's investments in China slowed due to the weak yen, but investment by Korean companies continues to grow robustly."

But Han Jae-jin at the Hyundai Research Institute said, "China's growth rate has slowed recently and other negative factors such as mounting debts of local governments and a real estate market slump now require diversified investment strategies expanding to other emerging markets in Asia."

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