The realization of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Indonesia rose by 15 percent to 2.99 billion U. S. dollars in the first quarter of the year from the same period last year.

The biggest FDI went to chemical and pharmaceutical industries, which received 1.49 billion dollars, according to the data released Tuesday by the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM).

Paper industry received 394.3 million dollars, mining sector got 252.3 million, food industry 189.8 million and construction sector 149.3 million.

Britain was the largest FDI source with 1.4 billion dollars, trailed by China's Taipei with 398.4 million, Australia 179.2 million, South Korea 165.2 million and Japan 149.1 million dollars.

The FDI led to the creation of 44,988 new jobs.

"The upward trend in investment has begun since the fourth quarter of 2006. With the issuance of new investment and customs laws, I believe investment in Indonesia will grow even faster," BKPM chairman Muhammad Luthfi told a press conference here.

Over the same period, the materialized domestic investments soared 60.56 percent to 13.68 trillion rupiah (about 1.5 billion dollars), creating 30,263 new jobs, according to the data.

The five major sectors to get domestic investment include paper industry (3.82 trillion rupiah/419.8 million dollars), metal and electronic industries (2.9 trillion rupiah/318.7 million dollars), food industry (2.4 trillion rupiah/263.8 million dollars), plantation (1.7 trillion rupiah/186.8 million dollars) and construction (1.4 trillion rupiah/153.9 million dollars).

Source: Xinhua