Guangdong Province attracted 1,025 foreign-funded projects worth a record US$3.423 billion in July, up 26.6 percent from the corresponding month of last year.

The foreign direct investment was valued at US$3.345 billion, an increase of 34.7 percent; and worth an average US$3.34 million each.

A senior official from the Guangdong Provincial Bureau of Foreign Trade and Economic Co-operation yesterday attributed the big increase last month to the signing of the CEPA (closer economic partnership arrangement) between Hong Kong and the mainland in late June.

"As a neighbor of Hong Kong and Macao, Guangdong will be the biggest mainland region to benefit from CEPA," said Liang Yaowen, director general of the bureau.

Investment from Hong Kong reached more than US$760 million, accounting for 22.2 percent of the total; and Singapore investors signed contracts worth US$845 million.

The other big investors include European states, the United States, Taiwan and Japan.

Guangdong attracted 6,579 foreign-funded projects in the first seven months this year. Despite SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) that seriously affected the province in the first half of the year, it attracted contracted foreign investment of US$13.363 billion between January and July, up 27.8 percent from the same period last year. Of that, foreign direct investment was valued at US$12.161 billion, a growth of 30.6 percent.

(China Daily August 28, 2003)