Report: China catching up to US in foreign aid flow

A new report says China is closing to matching the United States as a top global source of official grants and loans to developing countries. But it says much of Beijing's financing serves its own economic interests and produces little growth for recipients.

The report today by AidData, a lab at the College of William & Mary in Virginia, is the most extensive effort yet to measure official financing by China, which releases few details of its aid flows.

It comes as Beijing is trying to expand its global influence to match China's status as the world's second- largest economy.

AidData said China gave or lent USD 354.4 billion in the 15 years ending in 2014 to developing countries in Africa, Asia and elsewhere, compared with USD 394.6 billion for the United States.