Author: Levente, Horváth (2018). Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) by China in the world and in the Central-Eastern European region. In: Global Governance and Asia from the perspective of the CEE countries (szerk. Marcell, Horváth). Budapest, Shanghai Forum-MNB. 94-118. pp.
At the start of the 19th century China was one of the most affluent countries in the world, accounting for 20% to 30% of the world economy, after which it started to decline following the Opium Wars until the “Reform and opening” policy of 1978.
Owing to the reforms and opening announced by Deng Xiaoping (1904-1997), China took a new path, which has triggered huge development for the country. By the start of the 21st century, China had once again become one of the great powers in the world economy, thanks to its focused economic, foreign and geopolitical strategies.
The “Two Centenaries” of China are to restore the status of the country as a top economic power, which has been successfully implemented over the last 40 years, as China’s economic indicators make the country a global front-runner in every field. Today, China is a major country in the world’s commercial, investment and economic developments, and this rapid, dynamic growth raises concerns in the Western powers, which view China as a threat.
In this study, I present the degree of FDI growth that China has produced in some global regions in recent years, and the geo-economic strength it has gained in different regions, especially in the V4 countries and Hungary, through foreign direct investment. Is the concern of the West justified and are their fears published in the media substantiated? Has China really gained substantial influence in the region?