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Yuan loses core support as firms leave China
Since China opened to foreign investment in 1978 under Deng Xiaoping, global firms have ploughed in hundreds of billions of dollars to buy and build factories for market access and cheap labour, bolstering the Chinese currency. A gentle downtrend in foreign direct investment gave way to a steep drop last quarter and inflows to China slammed to their lowest since records began 25 years ago, raising the prospect that the long-term trend is turning. Corporate leaders and their advisers say a shift is under way and the political concerns behind investment decisions are long term, which leaves the yuan facing pressure ... (full story)