Vancouver, May 10 (IANS): Canada's overseas investment and foreign direct investment in the country both grew by more than 5 percent last year, Statistics Canada said.

Statistics showed that Canada's direct investment abroad increased 37 billion Canadian dollars ($36.75 billion) to 711.6 billion Canadian dollars ($706.86 billion) in 2012, reported Xinhua.

The US remained the top destination for Canadian direct investment, followed by Britain. Norway, Chile and Australia also saw more investment from Canadian firms last year.

The level of foreign direct investment in Canada grew 34.6 billion Canadian dollars ($34.37 billion) to 633.9 billion Canadian dollars ($629.68 billion), or a 5.8-percent increase, mainly due to more funds from Europe and the US.

While the US remains by far the largest foreign direct investor in Canada, the past decade has seen a gradual decline in the country's share of direct investment in Canada from 64.9 percent in 2002 to 51.5 percent in 2012, Statistics Canada said.

In 2012, 52.9 percent of Canada's total direct investment abroad was in the industries of finance, insurance and management.