NANCHANG, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese commerce official on Sunday called on foreign investors to maintain their confidence in the country, promising China would make continuous efforts to improve its investment environment.

Qian Fangli, deputy director of the Department of Foreign Investment Administration under the Ministry of Commerce (MOC), made the statement at a forum during the Expo Central China 2010 that opened Sunday.

Although operation costs in China were rising because of higher labor and raw materials costs, foreign investment continued growing rapidly " because improvements in China's investment environment helped lower their investment costs and boost confidence," Qian said.

Further, she noted that the Chinese government would continue to improve policies to encourage foreign investors. But she did not provide further details.

In the first eight months of this year, foreign direct investment in China totaled 65.96 billion U.S. dollars, up 18.06 percent from one year earlier, according to MOC statistics.

The Expo Central China, scheduled to run from Sept. 26 to Sept. 28, invited economists, entrepreneurs and officials to attend. The expo seeks to promote development in central China, which spans six provinces -- Shanxi, Anhui, Jiangxi, Henan, Hubei and Hunan.