China News Service, Guangzhou, August 24th (Reporter Cheng Jingwei) Guangzhou Academy of Social Sciences and Social Science Literature Publishing House jointly released the "Guangzhou Blue Book: Guangzhou City Internationalization Development Report (2022)" in Guangzhou on the 24th.
According to the blue paper, Guangzhou has a large number of international sister city partners with a wide distribution. In 2021, the number of sister cities will reach 100. The "Hundred Cities Plan" for international sister cities has been successfully completed, and international exchanges have reached a new level.
The blue book pointed out that since Guangzhou has carried out sister city work for more than 40 years, the number of sister cities has continued to increase, and the layout of good relationships has continued to expand.
In 2021, despite the impact of the global new crown pneumonia epidemic, Guangzhou will still form an international friendly exchange city with 13 overseas cities, including Senegal, Cape Verde, Estonia, Montenegro and other countries. space.
So far, Guangzhou has established friendship city relations with 38 cities in 35 countries, and established friendly cooperation and exchange city relations with 62 cities in 45 countries. There are a total of 100 cities with international friendship relations, and the international "circle of friends" has gradually expanded.
Guangzhou's tie-up cities are widely distributed on six continents in the world, among which the number of European cities is the largest, with 12 sister cities and 24 cities of friendship and cooperation.
According to reports, under the influence of the epidemic, the exchanges between Guangzhou and sister cities have not stopped, and the "cloud friendship" has been consolidated by means of video conferences, remote signings, live performances, and over-the-air dialogues.
The Blue Book also stated that, as a gateway hub for China's opening to the outside world and a hub for the construction of the "Belt and Road", Guangzhou enterprises have accelerated the pace of "going out".
In 2021, 167 new foreign investment enterprises (institutions) will be added in Guangzhou, a year-on-year increase of 2.5%; the contractual investment of the Chinese side is 2.342 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 178.6%; the foreign direct investment is 3.136 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 16.45%.
The Blue Book pointed out that due to the influence of geographical factors and investment inertia, more than 80% of the newly added enterprises (institutions) of Guangzhou's foreign investment were established in Asian countries and regions, while the investment amount agreed by the Chinese side was mainly concentrated in Asia and North America.
Hong Kong is still the main investment destination for Guangzhou enterprises, and the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area has brought closer economic cooperation between Guangzhou and Hong Kong.
In addition, North America will be the region with the largest amount of new Chinese investment in Guangzhou in 2021. Last year, Guangzhou enterprises deeply participated in the overseas mergers and acquisitions of Chinese enterprises, and successfully acquired American enterprises in the digital new media industry, medicine and life sciences and other industries. The Chinese agreed investment amounted to 11.76 billion US dollars, an increase of 18 times year-on-year.
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