(File photo)

Outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) of China enjoys an annual growth of 15.7 per cent, ranking the third in the world, said an official with China's Ministry of Commerce.

China's OFDI has increased from $68.81 billion in 2010 to $123.1 billion in 2014, said Zhong Shan, MOC International Trade Representative and Vice Minister of Commerce at a series of seminar on achievements during the 12th Five-Year Plan.

Two-way investment is close to balance for the first time, which indicates that China began to export capital rather than products, said Zhong.

The accumulated actual use of foreign capital is $497.5 billion, with an annual increase of 2.9 per cent in the first four years of the 12th Five-Year Plan. The actual use of foreign capital topped the world for the first time in 2014, according to Zhong.

Usage of foreign capital in service industry reached 55.4 per cent, 22 percentage points higher than that in manufacturing industry, Zhong said. More than 2,000 transnational corporations have set up their headquarters in China. High-end links like R&D, design and logistics have accelerate their speed to move to China.

China is the world's biggest trader in goods in 2013 and 2014. China's foreign trade growth rate is higher than world's average rate, although China's foreign trade slows down due to low growth rate of international trade affected by low global market demands, reindustrialization in developed countries and rising trade protectionism.

According to Zhong, the annual growth rate of goods trade in the first four years of the 12th Five-Year Plan is 9.7 per cent, 4.2 percentage points higher than that of the global at the same period. Its share of goods trade in the world increased from 10.4 per cent in 2010 to 12.4 per cent in 2014.

Total volume of foreign trade in service industry reached $604.3 billion in 2014, enjoying an annual increase of 13.6 per cent, while that in 2010 was $362.4 billion, ranking the second globally, said Zhong.