Bogotá D. C., September 20, 2024. The investment promotion agency, Invest in Bogota, recently carried out an intense agenda of business meetings in the cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Hangzhou, with the purpose of engaging foreign investment from China. During these16 strategic business meetings with different companies, at least six investment opportunities were identified in the sectors of electric mobility, logistics, e-commerce and pharmaceuticals.
The huge Asian market is a key player in the global economic outlook that has increased its participation in the Colombian market in recent years, providing its experience and knowledge to the growth and evolution of the city and the country.
It is worth noting that, as of 2023, 3.6% of foreign direct investment projects in the region of Bogota come from China, a country considered the main Asian trading partner in Colombia. In fact, between 2020 and 2023 its foreign direct investment grew 138% in our country, progressively increasing from $64.2 million to more than $152.5 million.
“The huge Asian market has grown its investment appetite in our country, becoming a key ally and the first Asian investor in our city”.
Invest in Bogota, in conjunction with ProColombia and the support of the Colombian Embassy in China, organized the seminar “Investment Opportunities in the Bogota Region”, which was attended by more than 50 Chinese companies, who were informed of the investment facilities and the qualities that the city and its metropolitan region have in the prioritized sectors.
“In Hangzhou we also participated in a partnership event with the city’s Chamber of Commerce in the logistics sector, to present the opportunities around the airport district and the stake in e-commerce leveraging the attributes of El Dorado International Airport,” added Isabella Muñoz.
Figures for Bogota – Region
Between 2019 and 2023, Colombia received 51 new and expansion investment projects from China, valued at $ 785 million, which generated more than 4200 jobs. Of the investments received in Colombia in the mentioned period, Chinese investments accounted for 4.5% in the number of investment projects, 3.5% of the estimated investment amounts and 2.5% of the new jobs generated.
Bogota-Region has been the largest recipient of this investment, receiving 49% of the investment projects (25 projects), representing around $ 453 million and estimated to have generated more than 2450 new jobs. As a result, China has positioned itself in the Top 10 of the most important countries for foreign capital, ranking seventh (USA), (25%), Spain (14%) and Mexico (6%) are the three most relevant FDI countries).
Since 2019, Chinese companies have carried out an average of 5 investment projects per year in the city-region. The year 2019 was the year with the highest number of projects (10) and 2020 was the year with the highest amount of investment ($ 155 million).
The availability, quality and cost of labor are the attributes of Bogota Region that have been consolidated as the third investment destination city in Latin America and the Caribbean for Chinese entrepreneurs, being above cities such as Mexico City and Santiago.
Investments from China have concentrated more than 76.0% in the following sectors: consumer products (32.0%), communications (20.0%), electronic products (12.0%) and software and IT services (12.0%). Investment in these sectors is estimated at $ 200 million. In consumer products, investments have been led by Miniso, and in communications, investments by Huawei and Xiaomi in retail projects stand out.
It is worth mentioning that CHEC (China Harbour Engineering Corporation) is currently building the first line of the Bogotá Metro, while CCECC (China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation) is making progress on the Regiotram de Occidente works. These infrastructure milestones will improve the quality of life of our citizens through better mobility solutions, in addition to continuing to position China as a relevant investor in Bogota and in the country.