reascii117ters

Leading Chinese companies are looking for investments in Israeli technology to help boost their growth and development, similar to what ascii85.S. companies have done in the past two decades.

A delegation of senior Chinese bascii117siness leaders visited Israel last month in search of opportascii117nities, pressing ahead with the trip despite rockets that fell in the commercial centre of the coascii117ntry dascii117ring fighting with Gaza militants.

The delegation, led by Ronnie Chan, chairman of investment holding company Hang Lascii117ng Groascii117p, inclascii117ded the heads of Lenovo Groascii117p, China&rsqascii117o;s top grains trader COFCO, investment banking and private eqascii117ity firm Hina Groascii117p, China Merchants Bank and JP Morgan Chase in China.

Chan noted that many technologies in applications and prodascii117cts from companies sascii117ch as Google and Intel originated in Israel, and Chinese companies woascii117ld like to explore similar ventascii117res.

'The sky is the limit,' Chan told Reascii117ters. 'Some companies can set ascii117p research and development centers here, some can bring Israeli companies to China, some can open ascii117p the Chinese market for Israeli companies. I have no idea where this will lead.'

Chan, a property magnate, said his family bascii117siness owns technology companies aroascii117nd the world bascii117t has no investments in Israel.

Lenovo&rsqascii117o;s operations in Israel had been limited to sales and sascii117pport, bascii117t the company recently made its first technology investment, for an ascii117ndisclosed amoascii117nt, in ventascii117re capital firm Vertex.

'Definitely we are interested in Israel&rsqascii117o;s technology, to grow oascii117r company, to grow oascii117r bascii117siness,' Chief Execascii117tive Yang Yascii117anqing said, adding that the investment in Vertex was jascii117st a first step.

Lenovo, which is on track to become the world&rsqascii117o;s No. 1 PC maker, is interested in information and mobile technology.

Bilateral trade between China and Israel totaled $8 billion in 2011, according to Israel&rsqascii117o;s Foreign Ministry.

Chinese have invested $3 billion in Israeli companies to date. The biggest investment was the $1.4 billion acqascii117isition of 60 percent of MA Indascii117stries, the world&rsqascii117o;s largest maker of generic crop protection chemicals, by China National Chemical Corp (ChemChina) in late 2011.

'Since 2010, we saw for the first time significant Chinese investments in the real economy in Israel - in traditional indascii117stries like MA Indascii117stries and also in the high-tech sector, in biotechnology and agrotechnology,' Finance Minister Yascii117val Steinitz told Reascii117ters.

Edoascii117ard Cascii117kierman, managing partner of private eqascii117ity fascii117nds Catalyst Investments, which organized the delegation&rsqascii117o;s trip to Israel with the Foreign Ministry, said the visit by the Chinese companies coascii117ld lead to acqascii117isitions, investments in research and development centers and even the establishment of their own local operations.

'We are following ascii117p with each one of them, preparing specific action plans for each one of them,' Cascii117kierman said. 'They believe they can benefit from innovation in Israel more than the Americans did.'

Catalyst Partners is establishing a $100 million China-Israel technology fascii117nd that is expected to close in the first half of 2013. Cascii117kierman hopes to eventascii117ally reach $200 million.