China foreign investment rules racist

China foreign investment rules racist, says Clive Palmer | The Australian

“I think it's one of the worst things that can happen to Australia to extend our racist policies into Asia,” he told the Queensland Media Club on Tuesday.(Palmer)

AUSTRALIA'S fifth richest man, mining magnate Clive Palmer, has denounced the federal government's foreign investment rules as racist, claiming they are skewed against Chinese companies buying into resource projects in Australia.
The larger-than-life businessman and Liberal National Party donor also let fly at Wayne Swan, who is responsible for the Foreign Investment Review Board, referring to the Treasurer as a “goose ... or waterfowl of some description” and warning that he would go to the High Court at the first opportunity if a development of his was affected.

Mr Swan's office immediately with a statement playing up Mr Palmer's links to conservative politics. “The Treasurer doesn't take advice from people who bankroll the Liberal Party's failed elections campaigns,” a spokesman said.

Sino-Australian China relations have been strained this year by the detention of four Rio Tinto Ltd employees, including Australian citizen Stern Hu, in July, on suspicion of commercial bribery and violating commercial secrets.

A number of high-profile deals between the two countries have also collapsed.
Mr Palmer said it was now time to focus on China, which has one quarter of the world's population and an urbanisation process 10 times greater then Europe.

It also holds $1.8 trillion in cash reserves, whereas US banks have none, he said.
Despite those impressive credentials any Chinese investment in Australia requires the approval of federal Treasurer Wayne Swan and the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB).

Conversely, an American can invest up to $950 million without the strict approval regime, Mr Palmer said.

“I think it's one of the worst things that can happen to Australia to extend our racist policies into Asia,” he told the Queensland Media Club on Tuesday.

“Capital is now in China, it's not in the US.”

Within the next 20 years China expects more than 300 million people to move from rural areas to the cities.

The metal and power demands from that shift would create opportunities for Australia for a long time to come, he said.

“That's why the Chinese are moving aggressively now to invest in resources worldwide,” Mr Palmer said.

But with the boost in trade, he said: “Suddenly there's a great cry in Australia about Reds under the bed.”

Australia's close geographic location to China, compared to that of the US and Europe, was an opportunity not to be missed.

“We've got the opportunity to grab that if our politicians could only be fair and treat the Chinese people and Chinese government with the dignity they deserve,” he said.

“Why should the average American, regardless of his education or qualifications, have the right to invest $950 million in Australia but the average Chinese person, regardless of how much money he has, is not allowed to invest without our treasurer saying so?”

The Chinese were happy to undergo checks but did not like “the idea of being discriminated against because of the colour of their skin,” he said.

The FIRB, which makes recommendations to the federal government, had processed 90 separate investment proposals from China over the past 18 months, and the country was Australia's third largest foreign investor.

In June, a $US19.5 billion ($22.45 billion) proposal by Chinese state-owned aluminium group Chinalco to invest in Rio Tinto stirred up concerns about the level of Chinese investment in Australia, before the deal collapsed.

But FIRB executive member Patrick Colmer last week predicted an increase in Chinese investment in Australia in the years ahead and said only a minority of proposals had received negative media attention.

“It's probably going to go higher than that in future years,” Mr Colmer said at an investment forum in Sydney.