China Jan-July FDI rises 7.9 percent year-on-year, up 5.2 percent in July - ministry

BEIJING (Reuters) - China attracted 471 billion Chinese yuan ($73.62 billion) in foreign direct investment (FDI) in the first seven months of 2015, up 7.9 percent from a year earlier, the Commerce Ministry said on Wednesday.

FDI inflows in July rose 5.2 percent from a year earlier to 50.6 billion yuan, the ministry said in a regular briefing.

FDI is an important gauge of overseas investment interest in China, but it is a small contributor to overall capital flows compared with the giant export sector.

FDI inflows into China rose 1.7 percent in 2014, the slackest pace since 2012, while the total was a record $119.6 billion.

Last year, China drew a record $119.6 billion of FDI, while outbound direct investment (ODI) surged 14.1 percent to a new high of $102.9 billion.In July ODI by non-financial firms fell 18.6 percent from a year earlier to $7.5 billion, the ministry said.

ODI surged 20.8 percent in the first seven months of the year compared with a year earlier to $63.5 billion, it added.

The government has been encouraging firms to invest abroad to slow down the build-up of foreign exchange reserves and to help local firms become more competitive internationally.Analysts expect outbound investment to soon match and then exceed weakening investment inflows, reflecting a cooling economy that seems to have played a part in the jump in outbound flows as businesses look for growth elsewhere.

(Reporting by Xiaoyi Shao and Kevin Yao)