U.S. Cities Seek to Woo Chinese Investment

By KATHY CHEN
Wall Street Journal

COLLEGE PARK, Md.—Chinese companies are increasingly looking to invest in the U.S., and state and local governments are scrambling to win a share of the money. But Chinese companies' go-slow approach and a longstanding preference for investing in Asia may leave governments disappointed.

In March, Chinese auto maker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group announced that it would buy Volvo from Ford Motor Co. for $1.8 billion. Even as such occasional, major deals grab headlines, many smaller mergers and acquisitions and so-called greenfield investments—in which an investor sets up a factory, office or other facility—involving Chinese firms are quietly taking place across the country.

Georgia is home to about a half-dozen Chinese ventures, including a soy-sauce plant. Texas has a handful of Chinese telecommunications and industrial manufacturers. In Milwaukee, Wis., Beijing's Toward Group has bought a shopping mall.

The trend stems in part from Beijing's moves to ease restrictions on overseas investments, as it seeks to nurture homegrown multinationals. Many Chinese firms, flush with cash or squeezed by competition, are casting abroad for new markets, technology and product lines.

Chinese and U.S. officials and trade groups note growing interest among potential Chinese investors over the past 24 months, with oversubscribed attendance at investment fairs, increasing numbers of inquiries concerning U.S. investment opportunities, and more delegations visiting the U.S.

"I think within the next two or three years, we will see a big wave" of Chinese investment into the U.S., says Clarence Kwon of Deloitte Services LP's Chinese services group. More here.