BEIJING, March 22 -- Some 7,160 new foreign-invested firms were set up across China during the first two months of this year, marking a 34.9 percent increase year on year, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed on Friday.

"The robust growth of 34.9 percent is the highest in nearly five years, showing that multinationals are still optimistic about the development opportunities of the Chinese market," said an official with the ministry.

Foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Chinese mainland in actual use stood at 215.09 billion yuan (about 30.29 billion U.S. dollars) during the period, down 19.9 percent year on year.

"Despite a decline in FDI in the first two months, it is still the third-highest level in nearly a decade," the official said.

FDI in the high-tech manufacturing sector jumped 10.1 percent year on year to 28.27 billion yuan in the two months.

FDI from France, Spain and Australia increased by 585.8 percent, 399.3 percent and 144.5 percent, respectively.

"At present, China's favorable factors in attracting foreign investment still outweigh the unfavorable ones, and the prospect of investing in China remains bright," the official said.