Foreign direct investment in Seoul City has reached a record high in the first half of the year, the first since the 2008 financial crisis, the Seoul Metropolitan Government said on Thursday.

Investment pledged in the six months through June totaled 3 billion won ($2.6 million), up 56.6 percent from the same period a year ago.

The amount executed during the period stood at 2.4 billion won, more than double the corresponding figure in 2011.

Investment from Japan more than tripled, which Seoul officials explained was mainly driven by the strong Japanese yen and power shortages following the 2011 earthquake and the ensuing nuclear crisis in eastern Japan.

Japanese investors pledged 1.4 billion won during the January-June period, accounting for 46.6 percent of the entire FDI.

Korea’s free trade agreements with the European Union and the U.S., which went into effect last year and earlier this year respectively, also seemed to have made Seoul more attractive for investors, the officials said.

The manufacturing sector reported a 406 percent increase in foreign investment compared to a year ago.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)