BOAO, Hainan - Chinese private firms are seeing new expansion abroad and already lead China's investment overseas, Chris Lu, CEO of Deloitte China, said on Saturday at a forum in south China's Hainan province.

The 2013 Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference witnessed hot discussion among private firm bosses, worrying about domestic economic circumstances and expecting investment-based development overseas.

They considered the present export challenges as an opportunity to set new goals, and most determined investment overseas as the best choice.

Lu said surging operating and financing costs posed a plight to private firms, while large multi-national businesses are bringing harsher competition to China's home market.

Therefore, Chinese private firms formed a vigorous investment trend in foreign countries, and have already become dominant in China's foreign investment. Greenfield and contract construction topped all the overseas projects of private firms, he said.

The Deloitte China CEO said, however, that mergers and acquisitions by private firms, mainly appearing in Europe and Americas, remains at about one-tenth of that by state-owned enterprises.

Bao Yujun, chairman of the China Private Sector Association, said at the forum that private economy shall provide the main force in boosting the country's economic development.

He explained that governmental public finance had been directed toward guaranteeing and improving people's livelihoods, while state-owned capital targeted areas related to the country's security, leaving private capital as the only choice to carry out large-scale investment in common and competitive markets.

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