Marketing staff with electronics producer TCL Corp showcase one of their products at an exhibition in Shenyang, Liaoning province. Some Chinese companies, including TCL, have increased investment in Poland, pioneering a surge of interest since 2006. [Photo / China Daily]

Tynel said Poland's strong economic growth and its financial support from the European Union (EU) all point to the country's increasing attractiveness for investment.

Poland witnessed a sharp recovery in gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 3.8 percent in 2010, up by 1.6 percent on 2009, and quarterly GDP growth has averaged nearly 4.4 percent since mid-2010, the fastest among European countries.

It is also the biggest beneficiary of European funding. It is due to receive approximately 70 billion euros from the EU between 2007 and 2013, of which 66.3 percent has already been allocated. Poland is applying for another 300 billion euros after 2013.

Wang Weidong, the board chairman of Nuctech Warsaw Company Ltd (NWCL), a local subsidiary of Chinese security inspection product manufacturer Nuctech Co Ltd, said the parent company plans to inject more capital into the Warsaw company this year.

NWCL realized a profit for the first time at the end of 2010 after launching in 2004. Local private enterprises hold 1 percent of the company's shares.

The company's products are usually designed in China but manufactured, processed and sold in Poland. "In Europe, 90 percent of the products are manufactured in Poland. This year we plan to transfer core maintenance technology to Poland," said Wang.

He said the decision to set Poland as a pivot for developing its business in European markets was mainly because of the low labor cost there at twice that of China. In western Europe labor costs may be as high as eight times that of China.

"The local education level also meets our requirements," Wang said, adding the company is targeting the European market partly because, unlike Africa, it is mature and composed of high-end clients, which encourages upgrades and innovation.

And TCL Corp, a major Asian consumer electronics producer and television maker, is planning to expand its Polish plant, which was established in 1998 with an investment of $66.38 million, said Yu Yang, manager at PIFIA.

Slawomir Majman, president of the PIFIA, said the political and economic stability of Poland, and the fact that it has performed better than other European countries since the financial crisis, have jointly made it more attractive to foreign capital inflows.

But China has acted a little slowly in seizing opportunities. "Polish investment in China far exceeds China's investment in Poland. We are not satisfied with that," said Majman.

He said it is a very important moment for China-Poland relations with the Polish president visiting Beijing on December 16. "We strongly expect a series of breakthroughs in the economic sector. China is very important to Poland's development strategy in the long term," added Majman.

To attract investment from China, in October Polish authorities approved a plan to set up a center for Chinese cooperation. It was designed to be a one-stop shop for Chinese enterprises that are interested in investing in Poland, Majman said.

In 2011, 93 percent of Poland's foreign investment came from the United States and European countries. The US contributed 31 percent, followed by France, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Sweden and Germany.

And China only contributed about 0.1 percent of FDI flowing to Poland by the end of 2010, said Yu Yang.

FDI to Poland has gone up by 22 percent this year. As of September, the figure surged by 80 percent compared with one year earlier.

The investment is mainly going to areas including auto parts manufacturing, business process outsourcing, machinery, aviation and information and communication technology.

"There has been no better investment environment than 2011 in nearly 10 years," Majman said, adding he is convinced that investment from China will rise inexorably.