Copy Cat? China Also Plans To Spend Billions Of Dollars In Infrastructure Investments

According to a Bloomberg report, China is looking to spend 3.5 trillion yuan (USD$503 billion) through 2020 to expand its railway system. Once completed, China's rail network will span 30,000 kilometers (18,650 miles) and connect approximately 80 percent of the country's major cities. The infrastructure investment was detailed at a State Council Information Office briefing in Beijing.

At the end of 2015, China boasted 121,000 kilometers of railways lines, 19,000 of which can support high-speed trains. By comparison, the United States had 228,218 kilometers of rail lines as of 2014.

For the first time ever, the central government turned to a private company to operate its inter-city rail service as part of the country's push to modernize its transport network. The government will continue this trend and plans on inviting private companies and capital to invest in the intercity and regional rail lines.

Trading Ideas

Bloomberg highlighted three companies, of which their Hong Kong-listed stocks moved higher on Thursday.

• CRRC (HKG: 1766), a manufacturer and distributor of railway transportation equipment, gained 1.60 percent.
• China Railway Construction Corp Limited (HKG: 1186), an engineering company that constructs railways, rose as much as 2.1 percent.
• China Railway Group (HKG: 0390), an infrastructure construction company, gained 0.8 percent.