SHANGHAI -- A total of 2,541 new foreign-funded enterprises were established in China's financial hub Shanghai during the first half of 2023, an increase of 63.3 percent year-on-year, data from the municipal bureau of statistics shows.

During the period, the actual utilization of foreign capital in the city exceeded $12.7 billion, up 7.1 percent year-on-year. Among the investments, about 96.2 percent went to the tertiary sector, an increase of 6.1 percent from the same period in 2022, the bureau said.

The majority of foreign capital was used in information technology, scientific research and technology services, as well as leasing and business services industries. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Singapore and Japan ranked in the top three in terms of the actual amount of foreign investment utilized in Shanghai in H1.

Shanghai has solidified its position as a preferred foreign investment destination and continues to maintain its foothold as the city with the most concentrated regional headquarters and foreign-funded R&D centers of multinational corporations on the Chinese mainland.

As of June, Shanghai is home to 922 regional headquarters of multinational corporations and 544 foreign-funded R&D centers, according to statistics from the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce.