But don't look for too many Chinese ventures. Most of the money went to bank deposits and other financial instruments.
Analysts say Chinese businessmen consider Australia a good place to salt away dollars.
Putting funds outside China also enables managers to make decisions independent of party bosses in Beijing. Still, some Chinese enterprises are making big waves. The food processor is a major exporter to China. MMI ships Australian iron ore to China. The rapidly developing country has a huge appetite for steel, currently at 91-million tons a year and expected to top 110 million tons by the turn of the century.