As a window to showcase the country's high-quality development and achievements 
of Guangzhou's reform and opening-up, the 7th Guangzhou Annual Investment 
Conference kicks off on March 30. It offers a vital platform for China and the 
outside world to deepen cooperation and boost investment, said the local 
officials. 

The conference consists of one general assembly, six overseas branch venues, 
and fourteen special events. For the first time, it sets up six overseas branch 
venues in five countries -- Germany, Israel, the United States, New Zealand and 
Singapore. 

Themed under "Spurring New Vitality", this year's event invites members from 
the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, overseas agencies, business 
associations and international leaders to discuss issues such as the 
construction of a new development paradigm with domestic and international 
circulation reinforcing each other.

Hong Qian, Chief of Guangzhou Municipal Commerce Bureau, said that the 
conference has become an important investment cooperation platform in the 
Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Hong pointed out that Guangzhou is 
a metropolis with the most competitive overall operating costs for enterprises. 

The city has a click-to-start entrepreneurial environment, response-upon-demand 
business environment, abundant production factors and strong overall market 
potential. 

In 2020, Huawei, Baidu, and Deloitte set up their legal entities in the city of 
Guangzhou, and AstraZeneca's South China headquarters is also expected to be 
established here. 

"Recognized by world-class companies also means that Guangzhou will join hands 
with the world's top companies to promote the development of key industries 
such as the digital economy, biomedicine and high-end services to a new level," 
he said.

"In the future, Guangzhou will strive to build a new generation of 
communication technology, smart and new energy vehicles, biomedicine and health 
products, smart equipment, robots and other emerging pillar industries," he 
added. 

According to Guangzhou Municipal Commerce Bureau, the city used 49.372 billion 
yuan ($7.67 billion) of foreign capital in 2020, an increase of 7.5 percent 
year-on-year. The number of contracted projects reached 931, a year-on-year 
increase of some 54 percent. There were a total of 1,096 registered projects, a 
year-on-year increase of about 163 percent.

In 2020, foreign-funded enterprises in Guangzhou contributed to more than 50 
percent of the city's total industrial output value. By the end of 2020, a 
total of 309 Fortune Global 500 companies had invested in Guangzhou, 
contributing to a total of 1,166 projects.

Statistics from the Ministry of Commerce show that in January 2021, Guangzhou's 
actual use of foreign capital was $517 million, a year-on-year increase of 4.9 
percent.

During the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020), Guangzhou's actual use of 
foreign capital exceeded $32.83 billion, maintaining a growth rate of more than 
5 percent for five consecutive years.

Source: Guangzhou Municipal Commerce Bureau