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Overseas Banks Interested in West China
A forum for developing west China has attracted the attention of a large number of overseas banks.
The Forum on Overseas Banks Participating in Developing West China, which ended today, drew the chief representatives and presidents of the China branches of 35 major overseas banks, including the American Express Bank, the Bank of America, Citibank, the Bank of Paris, the Swiss Bank Corporation, and Fuji Bank Ltd..
During the two-day meeting, sponsored by the Bank of China, the overseas bankers acquainted themselves with China's recent strategy for developing the western region and the country's policies to lure foreign investment.
West China covers an area of 5.4 million sq km with a combined population of 285 million people, constituting 56 percent and 23 percent of the national total, respectively. West China also boasts half the country's proven mineral reserves.
However, economic growth and people's living standard are still low in the western region. The per-capita gross domestic product in the west is only 60 percent of the national average.
The country began to implement the ambitious develop-the-west strategy this year, aiming to narrow the gap between the west and the coastal east.
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