ENG-2008 — Page 143

Commerce and Industry | 99

Inward Direct Investment

Hong Kong's attraction as a place to do business is evident from the inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) and the number of regional headquarters and regional offices in Hong Kong set up by companies outside Hong Kong.

Census and Statistics Department data shows that Hong Kong's FDI inflow in 2007 amounted to US$54.4 billion. According to the 'World Investment Report 2008' released by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, Hong Kong was the second largest recipient of FDI in Asia in 2007.

Hong Kong had 9719 enterprise groups' with inward direct investment in 2007, comprising 323 in the manufacturing sector and 9 396 in the non- manufacturing sectors. The market value of the stock of inward direct investment amounted to $9,186.5 billion. Chart 2 shows the major economic activities of these enterprise groups while Chart 3 shows source countries/territories of the inward direct investment. In terms of employment, 62 per cent of them were enterprise groups employing fewer than 20 people (Chart 4).

Chart 2 Position of Inward Direct Investment in Hong Kong at

Market Value by Major Economic Activity of Hong Kong Enterprise Group at end-2007

Financial institutions other than banks and deposit-taking companies 2.2% ($205.9 billion)

Transport and related services

2.9% ($263.0 billion)

Wholesale, retail and import/export trades 7.6% ($697.9 billion)

Banks and deposit-taking companies

8.8% ($810.7 billion)

Other activities 4.8% ($443.2 billion)

Investment holding, real estate and various business services 73.6% ($6,765.8 billion)

An enterprise group may consist of a parent company, its subsidiaries, associates and branches.