The 9th China International Investment and Trade Fair opened Thursday in East China's city of Xiamen. At the fair, a senior UN official said China will remain one of the top choices for overseas investment, and for multinationals¹ to expand their Research and Development work.

　　Secretary general of the United Nations Conference of Trade and Development, Supachai Panitchpakdi, said the latest forecast on Foreign Direct Investment shows that global investment will keep growing in the mid² and short-term, especially in China.

　　Meanwhile, China itself has become one of the largest investors³ among developing countries. The country's outbound investment reached 3.6 billion US dollars in 2004.

　　A survey by UNCTAD revealed that many investment promotion institutions chose China as one of the major investment powers in next three years