中国企业憧憬赴美淘金

    春节是中国人阖家团圆、把酒言欢的传统佳节。为什么我独独不喜欢它呢？

    每年这个时候，照理我都该回到我的祖国——中国，和家人团聚，走亲访友，共贺新春。但这段本该放松的假期总是排满了各类“业务咨询”，包括在美国置办物业或开设销售处等。

    20世纪90年代时，我兄弟管理着华中一家不景气的国营企业，每到春节他就忙着给我介绍他的企业家朋友。在奢华的宴席上，这些企业家们总是在问我，怎样才能让美国企业或有钱人投资中国项目？这些项目从医疗设备、高尔夫球场、烹饪用具，到软饮料不一而足。

    但时过境迁，近年来随着中国经济崛起，他们的问题已变成了美国有哪些投资机会。

    中国的对外直接投资（ODI）正在快速增长，尽管发达国家ODI整体呈现下滑的趋势。2010年，中国以680亿美元的对外直接投资额位居全球第五，超过了日本（560亿美元）和英国（110亿美元）等传统的对外投资大国。中国商务部部长陈德铭预计，中国的对外直接投资将保持30%的年增幅，三年内超过中国吸收的外商直接投资。

    与此同时，中国对外直接投资的国企和私企比例也在发生变化。五年前，中国政府开始逐步放宽对对外直接投资的限制，很多大中型私营企业也加入了走出去这一行列。2011年，中国最大的500家私营企业中有154家进行了海外投资，占中国对外投资总额的11%左右。

    现金充裕的中国企业预计2012年龙年将是另一个投资大年，他们看好美国和欧盟廉价的企业资产。“我们希望我们的扩张就像一条飞龙，稳稳地落在外国的土地上，”上海一位企业家俏皮地说道。

无奈出走

    中国国有企业的海外扩张是为了获得中国长期发展所需的原材料、先进技术和管理技能，但是中国私营企业在美扩张的目的却是五花八门。有些是想在美国国内销售产品，或设立职能部门，向其他国家再出口。有些是想获得新技术，提高生产率。一些志存高远的服装、玩具及汽车生产商则希望在海外创立自己的独立品牌。

    The Chinese New Year is a time of family reunion and feasting. So why do I loathe it?

    I'm expected to return to my native China to visit family and friends and celebrate the holiday. These supposedly fun vacations are normally packed with "business consultation" meetings about buying properties or setting up sales offices in the U.S.

    In the 1990s, my brother, who headed an ailing state enterprise in central China, would introduce me to his entrepreneurial friends. Over sumptuous meals, they bombarded me with questions about how to get American businesses or wealthy individuals to invest in Chinese ventures, from medical equipment and golf courses to cooking utensils and soft drinks.

    But that's all changed. In recent years, as China's economy boomed, their questions have switched from seeking American investment in China to looking for opportunities to invest in America.

    China's outward direct investment (ODI) is growing fast, despite an overall decline in the developed world. In 2010, China ranked fifth in outward investment with $68 billion, surpassing traditional investment giants such as Japan ($56 billion) and the United Kingdom ($11 billion). Chen Deming, China's Minister of Commerce, predicts that China's ODI will grow by 30% annually and outpace its inward investments from other countries within three years.

    And the mix of public and private investment from China has begun to shift. Since the government began to gradually ease its ODI restrictions five years ago, many large and medium-sized, privately owned companies have joined the race. Among the top 500 private enterprises in China, 154 invested overseas in 2011, making up about 11% of China's total outward investment.

    The cash-rich Chinese businesses expect 2012, the year of the dragon, to be another big year and they are eyeing cheap targets in the U.S. and the European Union. "We hope our expansion will be like a flying dragon that lands solidly on foreign soil," quipped a Shanghai-based entrepreneur.

Pushed out by China

    While state-run enterprises want access to raw materials, advanced technology and managerial skills to meet China's long-term development needs, private companies have different motives for setting up shop in the U.S. Some want to sell their goods locally in the U.S. or set up the functions needed to re-export to other countries. Others come looking for new technologies to improve their productivity. And a few ambitious clothing and toy manufacturers, as well as automakers, hope to create their own independent brands overseas.