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By Tang Guhan

The amount of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) hit a record high in China in 2017 with a total of USD 136.32 billion the China Times reported on Monday.

It came in second place in the world regarding the total amount, according to statistics from the United Nations.

China, one of the most popular places for foreign investments, has witnessed 35,652 foreign firms newly established in 2017.

On the contrary, other economies' FDIs slammed by 23 percent to 37 percent on average due to the decrease in the Return on Investment (ROI) and the transformation to asset-light features in investment models globally.

However, analysts worry that challenges remain in China with uncertainties in global markets as well as diminished low-cost labor advantages for foreign investments.

Long Guoqiang, deputy director from the Development Research Center of the State Council, said more and more countries are proactively carrying out policies that attract foreign investments while China is facing fierce competition in wooing overseas labor-intensive businesses as manpower costs are rising in China.

This wide-spread protectionism has held back investments across borders and investors are confronting more concerns on geopolitical uncertainties, said Zhu Bing, a Chinese official from the Ministry of Commerce.

"China is committed to building an open and stable economic environment around the world, at the same time, it will keep opening up and deepening its inward reforms no matter what changes other nations have made to their policies," he said.