China's FDI inflow rises 13.2 pct in March

Foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Chinese mainland in actual use climbed by 13.2 percent year on year in March, the Ministry of Commerce said Friday.

In the first three months, FDI in the Chinese mainland in actual use totaled over 269.2 billion yuan (about 37.35 billion U.S. dollars), down 10.8 percent year on year.

According to the ministry, 12,603 new foreign-invested enterprises were established nationwide, representing a year-on-year growth of 4.3 percent.

In terms of sectors, during the January-March period, actual use of FDI in the manufacturing and services industries stood at 71.51 billion yuan and 193.33 billion yuan, respectively.

Meanwhile, actual use of FDI in high-tech sectors in the period came in at 78.61 billion yuan, with FDI in the e-commerce services, biopharmaceutical manufacturing, aerospace vehicle and equipment manufacturing as well as medical equipment industries growing by 100.5 percent, 63.8 percent, 42.5 percent and 12.4 percent, respectively, compared with one year ago.

As for sources of investment, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)'s actual investment in China increased by 56.2 percent, while the inflow from European Union (EU) countries grew by 11.7 percent.

Also on a yearly basis, investment from Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Japan and the Republic of Korea climbed by 76.8 percent, 60.5 percent, 29.1 percent and 12.9 percent, respectively, said the ministry.

China's FDI inflow rises 13.2 pct in March

The U.S. dollar weakened in late trading on Friday.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, dropped 0.19 percent to 97.608 at 15:00 (2000 GMT).

In late New York trading, the euro climbed to 1.1819 dollars from 1.1786 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound added to 1.3475 dollars from 1.3470 dollars in the previous session.

The U.S. dollar bought 155.95 Japanese yen, lower than 156.34 Japanese yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar decreased to 0.7679 Swiss francs from 0.7747 Swiss francs, and it fell to 1.3630 Canadian dollars from 1.3687 Canadian dollars. The U.S. dollar was down to 9.0200 Swedish kronor from 9.0631 Swedish kronor.

U.S. dollar ticks down