China’s outbound direct investment in countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative hit $90 billion in the period between 2013 and 2018, with an average annual growth of 5.2 percent, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) announced on April 18.

The value of new contracts signed for international projects in Belt and Road countries reached $600 billion during the same period, registering an annual growth of 11.9 percent, said MOC spokesperson Gao Feng.

Data released by the MOC showed that, so far, Chinese enterprises have invested over $30 billion in countries along the Belt and Road to built overseas economic and trade cooperation zones, creating job opportunities for nearly 300,000 people.

Trade in goods between China and Belt and Road countries exceeded $6 trillion between 2013 and 2018, an annual average increase of 4 percent, accounting for 27.4 percent of the country’s total trade in goods, Gao said during a recent press conference.

The MOC will help achieve high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative, the spokesperson said.