Chinese Investment in Europe Shrinks, Mostly Goes to EV Industry

(Bloomberg) — Investment by Chinese firms into Europe fell to the lowest in more than a decade last year, with most of the new money going into electric vehicles (EVs) and related industries.

Chinese companies invested 6.8 billion euros ($7.4 billion) into the 27 European Union countries and the UK in 2023, according to a new report from Rhodium Group LLC and the Mercator Institute for China Studies in Germany. That was the lowest since 2010. Almost 70% of the new money went into EV-related areas such as batteries.

The slowdown comes as Chinese business advances elsewhere in the world, with overall outbound investment the highest since 2016. That underscores the increasingly difficult relationship between Europe and China. It’s set to worsen as the EU prepares to impose tariffs on Chinese EV exports, a move that may prompt Beijing to retaliate.