Developing countries: According to the most recent World Bank report (“Development Finance” 2006), net private capital flows to developing countries reached a record high of $491 billion in 2005. This figure compares to $ 396.6 billion last year - revealing a 23.6% increase. All the world's regions benefited from these capital flows but Eastern Europe and Central Asia got the lion's share due to multiple privatisations, mergers and acquisitions and investments. Ten countries continue to get most direct investment from abroad (DIA): China, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Czech Republic, Poland, Chile, South Africa, India and Malaysia. The report also notes a slight improvement in distribution of these capital flows because these ten countries attracted 65% of private capital flows compared to 75% in the 1990s. DIA flows from the South to countries of the South also increased from $14 billion in 1995 to 47 billion in 2003, 37% in DIA to developing countries. Most South-South DIA comes from companies in intermediate income countries which invest in their own regions. This is the case, for example, with Russian and Hungarian firms investing in Eastern Europe and Central Asia and South African companies investing in other Southern African countries. On the other hand, half of Chinese DIA targets projects involving natural resources in Latin America. Brazil invested massively in Angola and Nigeria. According to François Bourguignon, economist and Head of the World Bank, “These increased capital flows reflected greater confidence in the economic prospects of several developing countries”. The Bank believes that these gains reflect possible GDP growth of 6.4% in low and middle income countries in 2005, buoyed by China and India, whose output grew, respectively, by 9.9% and 8%. Excluding these two countries, growth in other oil-importing developing countries was 4.3%, down from 5.7% in 2004. Growth is expected to exceed 5% through 2008 in Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe, and close to 4% in Latin America. In rich countries growth will hover around 2.8%. Info: http: //http://www.worldbank.org .