In 2012, with the eurozone crisis and shrinking global demand, China's foreign trade growth slowed to about 6 percent - but this was still higher than the world as a whole and that of some major economies.
Last year, China was the world's second-largest foreign direct investment recipient after the United States, according to preliminary projections by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. So what is the outlook for China's inward foreign direct investment for 2013 and beyond?
China is in danger of losing its title as the world's factory. The threat does not seem to be coming from the West through higher productivity and more innovation from the United States and Europe, but from China itself. The threat is nothing else but China's demographic time bomb.
In many ways 2012 was a year that Chinese companies, which were ardent supporters of green energy or new energy, would like to forget. Considering the battering that the new energy sector received in the capital markets, it would also be safe to surmise that the sector was severely affected by the ongoing global financial crisis last year.
Gary Rieschel
Real estate market in China likely to see major investment swings this year
For China to be perceived as just "the world's factory" is neither sustainable nor desirable in the long run. As we move into 2013, it's a good time to think about how "Brand China" is perceived and the prospect of repositioning it.
Making the yuan into a fully convertible, internationalized currency has been talked about in China and around the world for more than two decades.
Chinese consumption is an important driver of economic growth, and an increasingly key source of sales and earnings for local and international businesses.
After a roller-coaster year, China's equity market closed with cautious optimism not seen since 2007.
As China-Africa trade and investment soar, many leaders see relationship as central to continent.
Hanna Tetteh, Ghana's minister for trade and industry, says China is an important partner for Africa's development but not the most vital one.
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