This year’s "Invest in Beijing" Fair, which aimed at attracting more investment to the city’s high-end industries, opened in Beijing on Dec 9.

As an annual investment promotion event taking place in the city since 2009, this year’s Invest in Beijing attached more emphasis on social and private capital’s involvement in its cutting-edge sectors, such as the new generation of information technology, biological medicines, as well as energy conservation, and environmental protection.

The organizing committee also set up a service station to offer face-to-face counseling for potential investors and companies in various fields, such as laws and regulations, investment environment and planning of industries.

Representatives from the city’s governmental departments, including the commission of science and technology, commission of education and commission of development and reform, came to explain the investment policies at the station, as did the investment promotion organizations from all the districts and counties of Beijing, as well as the city’s major industrial clusters —Zhongguancun Science Park, Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area and Beijing Tianzhu Free Trade Zone.

At the Fair, the Beijing Municipal Commission of Development and Reform released a batch of pilot projects which call for social investment in public services and utilities, and the new list of industries that are prohibited or limited by the municipal government.

The China National Gold Group Corporation, the country’s biggest gold producer, Nanshan Group, a chemical firm based in east China's Shandong province, and China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group signed contracts worth 31.1 billion yuan ($5 billion), higher than the 27.9 billion yuan at the contract signing ceremony during last year’s “Invest in Beijing” Fair.

This year's?Fair highlighted the promotion of projects in high-end sectors and strategic emerging industries to help advance the city’s economic restructuring and strengthen its role as the country’s center of politics, culture, global exchanges and scientific and technological innovation.

More than 500 representatives from state-owned enterprises, large private companies, multinational corporations, leading players from different industries, as well as chambers of commerce from China and abroad attended the fair.

Ma Peihua, vice-chairman of the Central Committee of the China National Democratic Construction Association, Niu Youcheng, a member of the Beijing Municipal Party Committee and the city’s vice mayor Cheng Hong were present at the Fair.