The amount of foreign direct investment that flowed into Korea in the January-September period hit an all-time high. FDI from China, the largest contributor, more than tripled on-year.

In the first nine months of this year, the amount of new FDI pledges to Korea reached US$14.82 billion, up 37.9 percent on-year, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said.

That is the highest-ever figure for the nine-month period, exceeding last year's entire amount of $14.55 billion.

In contrast, FDI from Japan dwindled by nearly 17 percent on-year due to a weakening yen and tense relations between Seoul and Tokyo.