YANGON, Jan 6: Foreign investment in Myanmar nearly doubled in the first 10 months of last year, with the bulk coming from Chinese-backed mining projects, official figures showed on Tuesday.

Between January and October 2008, China invested $855 million in Myanmar’s mining sector, making up most of the $975 million total foreign investment.

Foreign investment for the same period a year earlier was $505 million, according to the ministry of National Planning and Economic Development.

China made its massive investment in July, alongside another $5 million from Singapore, $94 million from Russia and $20 million invested by Vietnam in Myanmar’s oil and gas sector, statistics showed.

The Chinese investment is the largest since Thailand invested six billion dollars in the 2005-6 fiscal year for a hydroelectric dam project.—AFP