Ningbo's use of foreign capital up 40.4% in Q1

A view of Ningbo Zhoushan Port in East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/WeChat account: nbfb0574]

The actual utilization of foreign investment in Ningbo in East China's Zhejiang province hit $1.46 billion in the first quarter of this year, local authorities announced recently.

The figure represents a year-on-year increase of 40.4 percent, 8.7 percentage points higher than the national average, according to statistics from the Ministry of Commerce.

Ningbo was ranked second in terms of the scale of foreign investment in Zhejiang during the three-month period.

An official at the Ningbo Municipal Bureau of Commerce said that the robust growth in investment during this period can be attributed to the city's solid industrial foundation and economic resilience, adding that high-tech industries are still a magnet for foreign capital.

From January to March, the actual use of foreign investment in the city's high-tech sectors surged 185.95 percent year-on-year to $710 million, official data show.

Exponential growth was seen in the electronic and communication equipment manufacturing and services related to information technology, R&D and design.

The foreign capital invested in the city's electronic and communication equipment manufacturing sector was nearly 10 times that of the same period in the previous year.

To date, 70 Fortune Global 500 companies overseas have established a combined $24.82 billion worth of businesses in Ningbo.