Despite market speculation that there would be an exodus of foreign capital from China as a result of its economic deceleration, an appreciable surge in the non-financial foreign direct investment in the first two quarters is proof of China's continuing appeal to overseas investors.

According to data released by the Ministry of Commerce on Wednesday, the FDI that flowed to China amounted to $61.98 billion in the first half of this year, an increase of 4.9 percent from a year earlier. June, in particular, saw an inflow of $14.39 billion, an increase of 20.12 percent year-on-year, nearly 20 percentage points higher than the May growth, which was 0.29 percent.

The June growth marked the fifth consecutive monthly increase since February, when China reversed a negative FDI momentum that had started in June last year.