President George W Bush stoked the debate on whether or not foreign investment is good for the US when he issued an executive order to amend the way that existing regulation is implemented by improving “how the US reviews national security concerns that may arise from foreign investments”.

The 2007 law gave the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS) authority to investigate foreign investments in energy and infrastructure such as UAE-owned Dubai Ports World’s bid to buy a company that operates six major American ports before Congress voted to block the acquisition. In March, a deal between Chinese networking equipment firm Huawei Technologies and venture capital and private equity firm 3i was called off after the CFIUS blocked the transaction on the grounds of national security.