New Bright Spots in Foreign Investment
Global cross-border investments have been stifled by the Covid-19 pandemic. According to estimates from the Global Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Trend Monitoring Report released by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in March of this year，global cross-border investment flows will fall by 30%~40% in 2020 and 2021. In June，the European Chamber of Commerce in China and Roland Berger Consulting jointly released the European Chamber of Commerce in China Business Confidence Survey 2020 and according to the report，41% of German-owned enterprises in China are considering delaying or canceling their investment decisions in China and only 30% will maintain their current investment strategy. The pressure to stabilize foreign investment should not be underestimated.
On June 1，the Master Plan for the Construction of Hainan Free Trade Port was issued in an effort to stabilize foreign investment. A number of foreign-funded enterprises that had been monitoring developments in the Hainan special economic zone have since moved ahead with their investment projects on the island. According to data from the Hainan Provincial Department of Commerce，foreign capital used by Hainan during the first five months of 2020 showed a year-on-year increase of 146.6%，amounting to US$319 million. A total of 154 new foreign-funded enterprises were registered in Hainan.
Investment Promotion
The release of the Master Plan has put Hainan in the global spotlight. Many enterprises，including foreign-funded ones，have begun considering investment opportunities in Hainan.
A group contract signing related to the Hainan Free Trade Port project was held in Haikou on June 13. Eight of the 35 key project agreements signed during the event were foreign-funded projects，including Electricite de France (EDF)，Changfeng Energy Group，Royal Dutch Shell PLC and Irish Aircraft Leasing.
Cao Ling，finance director of Changfeng Energy Group of Canada told China Forex: "We signed a memorandum of understanding with EDF and the Provincial Economic Development Bureau at the contract signing ceremony，aiming to jointly promote the development plan on green energy industry and new energy vehicles in Hainan Province."
Changfeng Energy began business operations in Hainan in the 1990s and has been doing business in the natural gas service sector ever since. Cao also said "The most direct and significant benefit of the Hainan Free Trade Port construction is that it makes it easier to attract international partners. Policies concerning bulk trade in energy，cross-border capital flows and the smooth movement of people are all very valuable and offer favorable opportunities for our company."
Changfeng Energy is actively preparing for the establishment of the Sanya Changfeng International Natural Gas Trading Center. A preliminary assessment is under way.
This is in response to the policy of "taking the lead in implementing the financial sector opening in the Hainan Free Trade Port，and supporting the construction of international energy，shipping，property rights，equity and other trading venues," said Cao Ling.
Unlike Changfeng Energy，which began operations in Hainan years ago，EDF is a newcomer. Speaking at the signing ceremony，Fu Kaide，vice president of the EDF Group and president of the company's China region operations，said: "The issuance of the Master Plan is exciting news for us. The policies are very attractive and the opportunities are significant and valuable. Policies concerning taxation and industrial development are very attractive to foreign-funded enterprises. More outstanding enterprises and international talents will come here," he said.
EDF is a global benchmark enterprise in the low-carbon energy sector. It plans to introduce its charging and battery switching solutions for new-energy automobiles to each region of Hainan. Meanwhile，work is under way on Haitang Bay low-carbon smart energy multi-purpose project，EDF's joint investment with Changfeng Energy with a total investment value of 1.26 billion yuan. The first phase of construction is expected to be put into operation by the end of 2020. The whole project will effectively reduce the energy consumption of the Haitang Bay area and promote the development of a low-carbon smart city in Sanya.
In addition to the signed projects，many more enterprises have shown interest in Hainan and stated they will keep an eye on development opportunities here.
"Most of the companies that are interested in investing in Hainan are multinationals<