Photo taken on Jan. 7, 2020 shows China-produced sedans at Tesla's gigafactory in Shanghai, east China. (Xinhua/Ding Ting)

BEIJING, March 18  -- Foreign investor confidence in China's prospects continues to strengthen as the economy maintains restorative growth momentum, which drove up investment inflow in the first two months of the year, a Ministry of Commerce (MOC) spokesperson said on Thursday.

In particular, foreign investment in high-tech industries registered notable growth as China accelerates its construction of a new development paradigm, said spokesperson Gao Feng. The new development paradigm refers to "dual circulation," in which domestic and overseas markets reinforce each other, with the domestic market as the mainstay.

He said that industries hit hard by the COVID-19 epidemic last year, including the hotel and catering sectors as well as wholesale and retail trade, saw a quick rebound.