Suzhou's magnetic pull on investment stronger

Foreign investment in Jiangsu province's Suzhou is gaining strong momentum as offshore enterprises further deepen their presence, drawn by the city's dynamic economy, favorable policies and vibrant innovation ecosystem, said senior executives and industry experts.

"The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank remains highly optimistic about Suzhou's future development and hopes to deepen cooperation with the city across multiple sectors, such as infrastructure construction, green development, digital economy and new energy," said Jin Liqun, inaugural president and chair of the board of directors of the AIIB.

As one of the nation's leading cities in reform and opening-up, Suzhou has long demonstrated remarkable strength and vitality in areas such as innovation, industrial upgrading and urban development, Jin said.

Jin made the remarks at the 2025 Suzhou Global Investment Promotion Conference, which began on Saturday. Now in its second edition, the event attracted more than 1,200 participants from both traditional foreign markets — including North America, Europe, Japan and South Korea — and emerging economies such as Southeast Asia, the Middle East, South America and Africa.

"Suzhou is more than just a location, it is home to one of our most important global manufacturing and innovation sites," said Roy Jakobs, CEO of Dutch multinational health technology company Royal Philips.

Jakobs said Philips has established in Suzhou its only comprehensive imaging product base worldwide, along with its global business services center and research and development center. Notably, Suzhou's medical imaging base accounts for two-thirds of Philips' global CT (computerized tomography) production, he said.

Official data showed that to date, Suzhou has attracted over 19,000 foreign-invested enterprises, among which 178 are Fortune Global 500 companies. They have invested in nearly 500 projects in the city.

Today, foreign investment in Suzhou stretches far beyond traditional factory setups, with multinational players increasingly establishing R&D centers and regional headquarters. Official data showed that to date, 227 foreign enterprises have been recognized as provincial-level regional headquarters or functional institutions.

For example, Suzhou hosts the largest number of Panasonic's subsidiaries in China, covering cutting-edge businesses such as space solutions, automotive intelligence and smart manufacturing.

"Suzhou is not only a manufacturing hub for Japanese enterprises, but is also steadily emerging as a global center for innovation," said Tetsuro Homma, executive vice-president of Panasonic Holdings Corp, at the conference.

In the first quarter, Suzhou's actual use of foreign capital reached $3.53 billion, up 9 percent year-on-year, while reinvested profits totaled $825 million, a 21.9 percent increase, according to government data.

"Suzhou's comprehensive innovation capabilities rank among the best nationwide, bolstering foreign investors' confidence to expand their footprint here," said Tu Lifeng, deputy director of the Soochow University Think Tank.

"The surge in foreign investment reflects Suzhou's advantages in business environment, talent development, funding support and ecosystem building," Tu said.

At this year's investment promotion event, Suzhou signed 417 projects worth a combined 341.57 billion yuan ($46.9 billion), spanning next-generation information technology, high-end equipment, new materials, new energy vehicles, biopharmaceuticals and artificial intelligence.

During last year's event, 367 projects totaling 373.54 billion yuan were signed. As of April 1, 260 of those projects had broken ground, a commencement rate of 70.8 percent, with 105 projects already in production and use, a utilization rate of 34.8 percent.

"Looking ahead, Suzhou will continue improving trade facilitation, market access, and living and working convenience, while fostering a transparent, stable and predictable policy environment to help businesses access both domestic and international markets," said Liu Xiaotao, Party secretary of Suzhou.

Since the beginning of the year, Suzhou has signed nearly 900 new investment projects with a total investment exceeding 600 billion yuan. Global industry leaders such as Linde, Continental AG and Mitsubishi Motors have all increased their investments in the city.