Investment in China up 1.1%

FOREIGN direct investment in China rose at its slowest rate in seven months in February, the Commerce Ministry reported on Monday.

Investment for February was $US6 billion ($A6.53 billion), up 1.1 per cent from a year earlier, a period in the depths of the global crisis.

Many companies closed in February for the weeklong Lunar New Year holiday, which distorts economic data. But the ministry said combined figures for January and February, which compensates for the holiday distortion, showed investment was up only 4.9 per cent from the same two-month period last year.

The government reported 7.8 per cent growth in FDI in January over a year earlier.

Foreign direct investment includes spending on factories, real estate and other assets but excludes investment in stocks and other financial instruments.