China received USD 94.9 billion in FDI in the first nine months this year, registering a steady nine per cent increase over the same period last year.

Last month, China's FDI inflows stood at USD 9.56 billion, an increase of 7.1 per cent year-on-year, Ministry of Commerce (MoC) said today.

The growth slowed markedly from a 22-per cent jump in August but was still faster than a 5.2-per cent increase in July.

The FDI grew steadily as high-tech industries kept drawing foreign investors, the MoC said.

In the first nine months, FDI, which excludes investment in the financial sector, expanded 9 per cent from a year earlier to USD 94.9 billion, state-run Xinhua agency reported.

Among all sectors, high-tech services continued to shine, attracting USD 6.16 billion of foreign investment in the first nine months, a 57.6-per cent surge year on year.

High-tech manufacturing saw investment inflow accelerate to a 10.4-per cent growth during the period, reaching USD seven billion.

FDI in the service sector in general rose 19.2 per cent to USD 58 billion while that in manufacturing edged up 0.7 per cent to USD 29.8 billion, the MoC said.

More foreign firms invested in China through mergers and acquisitions, which accounted for 16.1 per cent of the total FDI in the January-September period, up from 5.8 per cent in the same period of last year.