China’s outbound direct investment (ODI) in non-financial fields has continued to grow so far this year as investment to countries and regions linked by the “One Belt, One Road” initiative surges, Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua reported.

The agency quoted Shen Danyang, spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, saying on Wednesday that ODI in the first eight months of 2015 rose 18.2 percent year-on-year to 473.4 billion yuan (US$74.3 billion).

In August alone, ODI went up 7 percent from the previous year, to US$13.5 billion, he added.

In the January to August period, Chinese investment to countries along the “One Belt, One Road” zone jumped 48.2 percent from previous year to US$10.73 billion.

The name “One Belt, One Road” refers to the “Silk Road Economic Belt” and the “21stCentury Maritime Silk Road”, proposed by the Chinese President, Xi Jinping, in 2013, with the goal of boosting trade and investment among Asia, Middle East, Europe, and Africa through infrastructure development.

There are over 60 countries and regions with a total population of 4.4 billion covered by the “One Belt, One Road” bloc, Xinhua added.