Foreign direct investment (FDI) into the Chinese mainland, in actual use, is tipped to hit a record high by surpassing the $140 billion mark, the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said Friday. 

Preliminary estimates indicate the second-largest economy's FDI inflow will reach roughly $690 billion during the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020), outweighing $60 billion earned during the 12th Five-Year Plan period (2011-2015), MOFCOM said. 

The country's FDI inflow ticked up for eight straight months in November. In the first 11 months of 2020, FDI climbed by 6.3 percent from the year-earlier period. 

China served as the world's second-largest recipient in the 2017-2019 period, with FDI inflow ascending by 5.8 percent from the year-earlier period to reach 941.5 billion yuan ($143.9 billion) in 2019, next only to U.S. FDI inflow of $251 billion.

(Cover image via CFP)