BEIJING, Feb. 14 (Xinhua) -- Foreign direct investment (FDI) into the Chinese mainland rose 0.3 percent year on year to reach 80.36 billion yuan (12.67 billion U.S. dollars) last month, data showed Wednesday.

The reading rose from 73.94 billion yuan posted in December, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said in an online statement.

According to the MOC, foreign companies newly established in January surged by 158 percent year on year to hit 5,197.

FDI in the high-tech sector continued to grow in January, as FDI attracted to the high-tech sector rose 42.3 percent year on year, accounting for 21.5 percent of the total FDI, up 6.3 percentage points from a year earlier.

Some 9.95 billion yuan flowed into the high-tech manufacturing industry, a sharp increase of 93.5 percent year on year, with electronics and communications equipment surging by 75 percent compared to the same period last year.

The high-tech service industry actually drew 7.35 billion yuan, up 4.8 percent year on year. FDI in R&D and design, and information services rose 57.6 percent and 17.1 percent, respectively.

In 2017, the country's FDI rose 7.9 percent year on year to reach 877.56 billion yuan.