China, Persian Gulf nations jump back into Western investing

After a brief hiatus prompted by the ongoing global financial crisis, governments in the Persian Gulf as well as China have started investing once again in Western financial institutions. On Thursday, the Qatar Investment Authority led a capital infusion of about $8.8 billion into Credit Suisse Group. Meanwhile, a trio of Libyan government institutions acquired a stake in UniCredit. They also announced that they will support the Italian bank's capital increase. Also, the Chinese government is planning to boost its stake in Blackstone Group.