Investment can be divided into broad sense and narrow sense. In a broad sense, investment refers to various economic behaviors that advance capital and currency in order to obtain future rewards or benefits. For example, opening factories, developing mines, reclaiming farms and buying stocks, bonds and futures. In a narrow sense, investment only refers to investing in various securities and buying and selling securities, which can also be called securities investment, such as buying stocks and bonds.

(2) Direct investment and indirect investment

According to the direct degree of investment behavior, investment can be divided into direct investment and indirect investment. Direct investment means that investors directly invest monetary funds into investment projects, form physical assets or buy investments from existing enterprises. Through direct investment, investors can own all or a certain number of enterprise assets and enterprise ownership, directly carry out or participate in the operation and management of investment, thus having complete or greater control over the investment enterprise. Direct investment includes investments in various tangible assets such as cash, factories, machinery, equipment, means of transport, communications, land or land use rights, and investments in intangible assets such as patents, trademarks, technical secrets and consulting services. Indirect investment refers to the investment in which investors buy government bonds, corporate bonds, financial bonds or company stocks with their capital in order to obtain certain income. Because indirect investment is mainly in the form of buying various securities, it is also called securities investment. Compared with direct investment, investors who invest indirectly generally only have the right to get certain income on a regular basis, except for stock investment, and have no right to interfere with the specific application and business decision-making of the invested object; The capital of indirect investment is flexible, and can be transferred or resold at any time, and other assets can be replaced to seek greater benefits; It can reduce the risk of investment loss caused by changes in the political and economic situation; It can also be used as a bargaining chip for the central bank to buy or sell when taking open market business to balance the tightness of banks.

(3) Actual investment and financial investment

According to different investors, investment can be divided into actual investment and financial investment. Actual investment refers to the investment in physical assets, such as gold, real estate, factories, machinery and equipment, cultural relics and antiques, jewelry and jade. Generally speaking, the actual investment involves the relationship between people and things and nature. The actual assets are visible, tangible and useful, with a wide range of uses, stable value and high investment returns. Financial investment refers to assets invested in the financial field in the form of monetary value, such as stocks, bonds, bank deposits, foreign exchange, etc. Financial investment does not involve the relationship between man and nature, but only financial transactions between people. Financial assets are also intangible and abstract assets with the characteristics of high investment returns and unstable value.

(4) State investment, enterprise investment and individual investment.

According to different types of investors, investment can be divided into state investment, enterprise investment and individual investment.

State investment refers to the investment made by the central government and local governments at all levels, usually in the form of financial investment, which can be directly arranged by the state for free use, or entrusted to professional banks or investment companies that manage investment for loans and paid use. The main body of state investment is governments at all levels, and the investment targets are mostly public utilities, such as schools, post offices and other infrastructure and public facilities. So it is also called government investment and public investment. Its essence is that the state, as a special economic subject, guides social production, stabilizes social life and maintains the normal development of economy and society.

Enterprise investment refers to the investment made by enterprises as the main body of investment. The enterprises here include state-owned, collective, individual, private, enterprise groups, multinational companies and their subsidiaries, financial institutions and overseas branches, and their investment scope covers all aspects of social production and social life. The essence of enterprise investment is that enterprises, as independent investment subjects, make compulsory or conscious contributions to the country on the premise of giving priority to their own investment objectives and economic interests. For enterprise investment, we should not only support and encourage, but also regulate and restrain to prevent bad investment behavior.

As an individual investment subject, an individual refers to an individual who buys investment securities as financial assets with the funds in his hand to obtain income. It is worth noting that individuals here do not refer to individual enterprises, and the two should be distinguished. The essence of personal investment is that the vast number of workers turn their savings into investment, which increases social accumulation while individuals gain it.

(5) Productive investment and unproductive investment

Investment can be divided into productive investment and unproductive investment according to investment fields.

Productive investment refers to investment in material production fields such as production and construction, and its final result is various productive assets. Because the productive assets of enterprises are divided into fixed assets and current assets, productive investment is divided into fixed assets investment and current assets investment. In economic construction, the investment in productive fixed assets and current assets must be kept in an appropriate proportion, so that production and investment can be carried out normally. Productive investment can be rewarded through circulation and turnover, and can realize value-added and accumulation.

Unproductive investment refers to the investment in unproductive fields, and the final result is various unproductive assets, which are mainly used to meet people's material and cultural needs. Unproductive investment can be divided into two parts: one part is purely consumer investment, which is unprofitable and cannot be recovered, and its reinvestment depends on social accumulation, such as investment in schools, national defense security and social welfare facilities; The other part is the investment that can be transformed into intangible goods. This kind of investment is profitable, and it can recover the investment, and even realize value-added and accumulation, such as investment in theaters, TV stations, information centers and consulting companies.

(6) profitable investment and policy investment

According to different business objectives, investment can be divided into profitable investment and policy investment. Profitable investment, also known as economic investment, is often called commercial investment in the west. Refers to the investment in order to obtain profits through production and operation, which is generally mainly invested in the field of production or circulation. Economic investment can bring profits, shoulder the important function of promoting production development and social progress, and also bear certain risks.

Policy investment, also known as non-profit investment, refers to investment that cannot or cannot bring economic profits to ensure social development and people's living needs. Policy investment can not bring economic benefits, but can bring social benefits, which can be divided into two types: one is investment spent on projects that do not belong to production and operation, so there is no profit, such as investment in public facilities. This investment expenditure is arranged by the state. The other is the investment expenditure of production and operation, which has potential profitability, but losses occur due to various factors. This kind of investment is allowed by the state, and there are corresponding policies and regulations. The latter investment will change into profitable investment with the change of objective conditions.

For a country, it is necessary to deal with the relationship between policy investment and economic investment, try to save the expenditure of policy investment and strengthen the construction of economic investment.

(7) Domestic investment and foreign investment

According to different sources of investment, investment can be divided into domestic investment and foreign investment. Domestic investment refers to the investment made by the government, enterprises and individuals in the country. The total domestic investment represents a country's economic development level, accumulation capacity and economic strength.

Foreign investment refers to the investment of foreign governments, enterprises, individuals and international institutions within their own territory. It includes two types: foreign capital directly enters China for investment in various forms, and domestic fundraisers issue bonds and stocks abroad to raise capital and bring it back to China for use. The essence of foreign investment is to use foreign capital, international economic resources, including advanced technology and equipment, borrow debts to invest and operate, and develop the domestic economy.

A country, especially a developing country, should properly handle the relationship between domestic investment and foreign investment, determine the scale, content and method of absorbing foreign capital according to its own situation, and make the best use of foreign capital on the premise of fully relying on its own strength.