Despite China's economic slowdown, foreign investments in the country increased at a record pace in 2015, taking in a total of US$126 billion, according to data released by the Ministry of Commerce (MOC).

Official data showed that nearly 24,000 foreign-invested firms were established in the country from January to November last year, an increase of 11 percent from the same period in 2014.

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Of the US$126 billion total foreign investment, about US$114 billion in non-financial investment were posted in the first 11 months of 2015, up 11 percent year-on-year, data from the ministry showed.

Most of the foreign investment last year flowed into the service sector and advanced manufacturing, which were among the sectors that the government has been promoting, according to the MOC statement.

"Foreign investment increased at a relatively fast speed with improving quality against the background of a fierce global fight for capital and persistent downward pressure," the MOC said in a statement.

It was in 2014 when China overtook the United States for the first time as the world's largest recipient of foreign investment, after taking in US$119.6 billion.

In December, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced that the country will keep its door open to foreign investment and that its policy toward foreign investment will continue.

According to the Chinese president, China will continue to protect the legitimate rights of foreign-funded enterprises in the country and that the government's direction of providing better services to these firms will continue.

China has just recently opened up more sectors to foreign investments as part of a sweeping reform aimed at transforming the economy into a service-oriented economy. 

TagsChina Foreign Investment, China Non-Financial Investment