Direct investment by South Korean companies into China jumped 29.8 percent from a year ago to US$3.97 billion in 2014, China's commerce ministry said Friday.

The rapid growth in investment by South Korean firms in China marked a striking contrast to Japanese companies, whose direct investment in the world's second largest economy dropped 38.8 percent to $4.33 billion last year amid geopolitical tensions between Beijing and Tokyo.

Last year, total foreign direct investment into China rose 1.7 percent from a year earlier to $119.6 billion, while China's overseas investment grew 14.1 percent to $102.9 billion, the Chinese ministry said in a statement. (Yonhap)