foreign investment news stories on Newser

Chinese Sow Stakes in French Wine Country

Nick McMaster — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 15:00:00 CDT

Mao wouldn't likely approve on a couple of fronts, but Chinese investors looking to introduce their countrymen to the best in wine are buying up storied chateaus in the heart of French wine country, the Washington Post reports. Two companies paid several million dollars each to own Chateau Richelieu and...

Foreign Companies Cash In on Stable Iraq

Kevin Spak — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 12:00:00 CDT

With security and stability on the rise, Iraq’s government is turning its attention, and its generous budget, toward reconstruction. That’s led to some big opportunities for Western businesses, which are scrambling to get a cut of the country’s $25 billion reconstruction budget. Iraq, which lacks the resources to rebuild on...

Petrodollars Snap Up Americana

Rob Quinn — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 04:33:20 CDT

Foreign investors flush with dollars from the global commodities boom are using those greenbacks to buy flashy American properties, the New York Times reports. The government of Abu Dhabi bought a 75% stake in the Chrysler building Tuesday. Other recent "trophy" buys have included Donald Trump's Palm Beach mansion and...

Foreign Investment in Iraq Up

Nick McMaster — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 16:09:22 CDT

European and Asian investors are taking advantage of the recently stabilized Iraqi business climate, USA Today reports. US firms still regard Iraq as too dangerous to invest in, but that attitude may cost them the best opportunities. The firms “who are getting in on the ground floor are not American,...

Canada Could Hurt Firms It Tries to 'Protect'

Nick McMaster — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 15:28:04 CDT

A move last month by the Canadian government to block the country's top space-tech firm from selling one of its divisions to a US buyer illustrates a tricky balancing act, Christopher Sands writes in the American : How far should Ottawa go to appease nationalist sentiment if it eats into economic...

Japan Rebuilds Economic Walls

Kevin Spak — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 13:30:08 CDT

Once, Japan was one of the world’s most closed economies, with near-impregnable barriers guarding against foreign investors. It's moving back in that direction, the Wall Street Journal reports. Companies are buying stakes in each other to complicate international takeover bids, and resurrecting the “poison pill” strategy America pioneered in the...

$1B Intel Plant Helps Vietnam Reinvent Itself

Rob Quinn — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 12:05:01 CDT

Intel's choice of Vietnam for a massive superconductor plant surprised the tech world 2 years ago, but the firm's trailblazing has sparked a wave of high-tech investment that is transforming the country, the San Jose Mercury News reports. The plant is still more than a year away from completion, but...

Looking for a Real Recession? Try Japan

Wesley Oliver — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 15:18:38 CST

While economists squabble over a possible US recession, Japan has quietly slipped into one. The country’s postwar riches have all but vanished, the Washington Post reports, as its GDP tumbles from fourth to twentieth among the world’s countries and its share of the world’s economy dips from 18% in 1994...

Foreign Buying Spree Reaches Deep Into US

Caroline Zimmerman — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 19:01:21 CST

As the dollar drops, foreign investors are buying up US enterprises large and small, from multi-billion-dollar stakes in Wall Street banks to ownership of chemical factories and construction companies in the likes of North Carolina. Canadian, British and German companies have been expanding their portfolios in the US for years,...