With deep pockets and ambitions to become global players, Chinese companies are extending their reach beyond China's borders.

The country's outbound direct investment (ODI) hit $68.81 billion in 2010, soaring 21.7 percent from 2009, said the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM).

China's ODI accounted for 5.2 percent of global capital flows last year, and China exceed Japan and the United Kingdom for the first time to become the fifth largest source of ODI in the world.

By the end of 2010, Chinese enterprises had established 16,000 overseas companies in 178 countries and regions. The commercial service sector has been the most coveted area for Chinese investment, followed by the finance, wholesale, retail and mining industries.

Meanwhile, merger and acquisition (M&A) became a convenient route for China to step onto the world stage. The MOFCOM said Chinese companies were responsible for $29.7 billion worth of overseas M&A deals last year, up 54.7 percent.

"M&A activities will continue to grow because Chinese companies have become more adept and sophisticated at acquiring assets overseas, even in the face of market turbulence," said a recent report of the accounting firm Deloitte.

"Not only state-owned enterprises, but also privately owned companies are showing an increased willingness to invest abroad, driven by the need to secure raw materials from overseas and to escape from the overly crowded domestic market," said Shen Danyang, a spokesman of the MOFCOM.