China and Belt & Road infrastructure - CEE transport infrastructure

Since its unveiling in October 2013, China’s Belt & Road Initiative (B&R) has promoted Eurasian trade and integration along the Silk Road Economic Belt and the Maritime Silk Road. The B&R region spans three continents and includes 66 countries from Lithuania to Indonesia.The review finds that around US$494 billion of projects and deals were announced in 2016 across seven core infrastructure sectors (utilities, transport, telecoms, social, construction, energy and environment). A third of all these were in China, with the remainder spread across the rest of the B&R region. In CEE, the Belt & Road Initiative could have significant implications for CEE as the financial needs for further transport infrastructure development in CEE has been estimated at EUR 615 billion through 2025. In line with B&R initiative, CEE region will be one of the most attractive markets for Chinese and international investors; we do foresee increased Chinese investment in CEE, especially in infrastructure area.