Why US would not antagonize China over some boulders at the West Philippine Sea...

The U.S. debt runs to about $16.7 trillion as of February 2013 and China, which owns an estimated $1.22 trillion in U.S. Treasury bonds, is the number-one investor among foreign governments, according to the February 2013 figures released by the U.S. Treasury. This amounts to over 21% of the U.S. debt held overseas and more than 7% of the United States’ total debt load.

Apart from that, the following excerpt from various online business reports recapitulates some of the chinese significant direct investments in the United States, to wit:

“Investment and capacity data is available for about 50 projects, according to which China has invested $10 billion in 16 projects and $27.5 billion in 38 solar power projects, which represent a cumulative generation capacity of 6,000 MW. Interestingly, the majority of the investments have been made in developed countries, led by the United States, Germany, and Italy. While most of the investments were made in implementing the power generation projects, several investments were made in the manufacturing and sales sector. At least 25% of the investments have been made in the US, with most of them being in the solar energy sector.”

“Chinese firm Shanghui is now seeking to purchase American food giant Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NYSE:SFD) in a 4.72 billion dollar deal. It is a very big deal, and the $5 billion would make it the largest deal so far. It's hardly the only one we've seen. We've seen, I think, about 650 deals over the last decade-plus, and those together amount to about $25.4 billion. So this deal would add beyond $30 billion”

“China is studying the possibility of investing a portion of its $3.4 trillion in foreign-exchange reserves in U.S. real estate, .”

“Time Warner inks investment partnership with China Media Capital seeks to capitalize on rapidly growing demand for digital services and content. From 2000 through the first quarter of 2013. China invested $ 107 million in Ohio across 17 deals. Among nearby states, Indiana had eight deals with $ 137 million. Michigan had 48 deals worth $ 1 billion and Kentucky had one deal worth $ 10 million. The top states for Chinese investment are California, New york and Texas. "

"China-based companies have struck more than $10.5 billion in U.S. deals so far this year, putting 2013 on track to be a record year for such mergers and acquisitions, Reuters reports. And the Tar Heel State ranks fifth-highest among states receiving the most business investment from the Asian nation. N.C. universities can be credited with forming many of the connections between the U.S. and China, according to the report. The state also maintains offices in Hong Kong and Shanghai to promote trade and investment, and local business leaders and elected officials travel to the country often “

“In June of 2005, the Chinese personal computing giant Lenovo completed its takeover of IBM's personal computing division, a $1.75 billion deal that quadrupled Lenovo's annual revenue. The acquisition made Hong Kong-owned Lenovo the third-largest PC vendor on the planet. Before the sale, few of Lenovo's products were sold outside China. Since then, its ThinkPad brand of computers has grown steadily in the United States, capturing 40 percent of the U.S. retail market of computers that cost at least $900 and run Windows 8, according to the Wall Street Journal. “

“Multinational Chinese company Dalian Wanda Group made the biggest acquisition of a U.S. company by China in purchasing AMC Entertainment Inc. for $2.6 billion last year. The Wanda Group—which is also a giant in Chinese real estate, department stores, and hotels—is headed by billionaire Wang Jianlin, who has said he will invest about $500 million to upgrade operations and reduce debt at AMC, which is the second-largest movie chain the U.S. The takeover means ownership over the 5,034 screens in 346 multiplex locations that AMC owns in the U.S. and Canada. “

“In 2010, Chinese carmaker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group completed its purchase of Ford Motor-owned company Volvo for $1.3 billion and an additional $200 million upon completion of the acquisition. Headquartered in Sweden, Volvo was purchased by Ford in 1999. Three years after its 2010 sale, Volvo reported profits dropped by 82 percent in 2012, but reported a 30 percent increase in Volvo Chinese sales in April 2013 over a year earlier. “

“Chinese company Wanxiang Group purchased bankrupt lithium ion battery maker A123 in a $256.5 million acquisition that has lawmakers on both sides of the aisle grumbling. The battery maker was backed by tax dollars, having received a $249 million grant from the Recovery Act to build advanced manufacturing plants in Michigan. The 2013 deal cleared an obstacle when a Treasury Department agency approved the acquisition, and it now heads to bankruptcy court. “

“Hanergy Group, China's largest privately owned renewable energy company, took over MiaSole, a California solar panel maker, for a tenth of its asking price in the midst of a downturn in the market. For a reported $30 million, Hanergy acquired the Santa Clara owned startup which had an original asking price of $1.2 billion. MiaSole investors reportedly put more than $550 million into the company. “

“In early 2013, Sinopec Corp., China's second-largest energy company, agreed to purchase a one-third stake in an oil and natural gas shale project owned by Chesapeake Energy Corp. for $2.2 billion. The foreign investment is said to be a benefit mostly to the United States economy, adding 20,000 jobs and providing tax revenues for the government. In early 2012, China Petrochemical Group, 
better known as Sinopec, agreed to purchase a one-third stake in five oil projects in the Oklahoma-based Devon Energy Group. This investment was seen as mutually beneficial to both parties, since Devon wanted to find a partnership that would allow the company to tackle the cost of building expensive wells to produce oil and gas. “

“ AES Corporation, one of the world's leading electrical power companies, announced that it closed an equity sale with the China Investment Corporation in May 2010. CIC acquired approximately 15% of stock in the electrical giant, adding more than $1.58 billion in new capital to AES. "Working with CIC will expand our sources of financing in Asia, where the majority of growth in electricity demand is projected to occur," Paul Hanarahan, President and CEO of AES was quoted as saying at the time in a press release “

“ In the age of laptops and smartphones, printing presses do not jump to mind as hot investments, but that did not stop the Shanghai Electric group from acquiring 100% ownership of press manufacturer, Goss International. The Chinese multinational power and electrical equipment manufacturer spent $1.5 billion on the purchase in June 2010 in hopes of being able to better compete in the international technical industry. “

“Although the American auto industry has seen better days, a Chinese automotive giant made a major investment in the traditional American manufacturing sector in Nov. 2010 with the purchase of General Motors subsidiary, Nexteer Automotive. GM's $450 million sale of Nexteer resulted in China's biggest single investment in the international auto industry, while also making Beijing-based Pacific Century Motors the largest private employer in Saginaw, Mich. The sale was seen as a positive transaction on both ends, as it gave stability to the troubled American company and gave the Chinese automotive market greater access to efficient technology. “

“ In early 2011, Chinese internet company, Tencent, acquired a majority stake in Los Angeles- based Riot Games worth nearly $400 million. As a successful internet social game company, Riot Games is best known for its hit game, League of Legends, and the company boasts more than one million active players in its entirety. Tencent's claim to fame is QQ, a popular Chinese messaging service which currently has more than 176 million users. The company planned to distribute and introduce League of Legends to the Asian market through its QQ Game portal. “

“In May 2012, Massachusetts-based Greatpoint Energy and Shanghai-based Wanxiang Holdings Group announced an equity investment agreement, which raised more than $1.25 billion in project funding. The major project funded out of this partnership was a natural gas production facility to be located near the autonomous Chinese region of Turpan. Chinese chemical giant, Sinopec, agreed to purchase the natural gas produced from the new facility. “

On the reciprocal end:

 “ the total investments in China by U.S. multinationals were worth $49 billion as of 2009 -- up 66%   from two years earlier, according to U.S. Commerce Department figures. And 2010 is shaping up to be another banner year for the Chinese -- U.S. companies poured an additional $6 billion into China in the first three quarters alone. "American investment in China is still growing," said Nicholas Lardy, a China expert at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. "It's one of their most profitable markets, if not their most profitable market. No one is pulling back."

“In 2010 General Motors (GM) sold more cars in China than in the United States for the first time, but did not export any cars from China back to its home market. GM, which closed 13 U.S. plants since its bankruptcy filing in 2009, has opened 15 plants in China in the last 10 years.

“Yum Brands (YUM, Fortune 500), owner of fast-food chains like KFC and Pizza Hut, reported $1.2 billion in Chinese sales in its most recent quarter, surpassing its declining U.S. sales for the first time. It added 245 restaurants in China in the first nine months of last year while selling off U.S. locations. And as Chinese President Hu Jintao meets with President Obama during a state visit, top businesses leaders are lining up for a chance to get into China's good graces. “

Recently however, there are indications that not all of these American companies are please with China, and to quote a related news:

 “Forty percent of US firms consider moving factories out of China    The main reasons cited for this trend are concerns over the quality of goods manufactured in China, the country’s rising operating costs, as well as rising competition from other increasingly popular manufacturing countries in Southeast Asia. “ 

Notwithstanding and despite of the reported planned pullout, there will still be a substantial investment by the American companies that would remain in the Chinese mainland.

In contrast the value of trade between the Philippines and the US is more or less in the vicinity of 1.7 billion dollars annually with no significant change from prior years. Meanwhile, as can be gleaned from the foregoing synopsis, the business relationship between China and the United States is soaring strong, even stronger than the famed Manila rope, so to speak. Although at the onset some suspicion and caution had surrounded the Chinese investments in America, it nonetheless had materialized and prospered to the point of mutual benefit and partnership like co-existence.