Foreign direct investment (FDI) into the Chinese mainland, in actual use, expanded by 7.5 percent year on year to 68.63 billion yuan in May, said Gao Feng, spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce, at a press conference on Thursday.

In U.S. dollar terms, the FDI inflow stood at 9.87 billion dollars, up by 4.2 percent year on year.

From January to May, the the country's FDI totaled 355.18 billion yuan, down 3.8 percent year on year, narrowing by 7 percentage points compared to the first quarter of the year.

During the period, the inflow to high-tech industries rose by 2 percent, with the information and e-commerce services sector up 42.3 percent and 67.9 percent, respectively.

Investment from members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations increased 10.1 percent year on year, while that from countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative rose 6 percent.

The country has rolled out a string of policies to better invigorate and protect foreign investors, which advanced the growth of the FDI, the ministry said earlier.