China remains one of most attractive investment destinations: UNCTAD

BEIJING -- China is still one of the world's most attractive destinations for investment, according to a survey done by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

Foreign direct investment (FDI) in real terms attracted to the Chinese mainland was second only to the United States in 2015, Zhan Xiaoning, an official with UNCTAD in charge of investment and enterprises, said Tuesday.

FDI into the Chinese mainland rose 6.4 percent year on year to $126.7 billion in 2015, according to the Ministry of Commerce (MOC).

At a press conference on the world's 2016 investment report, Zhan noted a trend where, among all FDI into China, more has been flowing to capital and technology-intensive sectors and high value-added fields.

Foreign investment in the service industry rose 17.3 percent in 2015, accounting for 61.1 percent of the total flow for the period, the MOC data showed.

FDI witnessed a robust global recovery in 2015, surging 38 percent in the year to $1.76 trillion, the highest since the global finance crisis in 2008, according to the report.

However, the momentum could be interrupted, as Zhan expects global FDI to fall 10 to 15 percent in 2016 before restoring the growing trend in 2017 and jumping to over $1.8 trillion in 2018.