Mainland China's cumulative investment reached $9.60 billion in January, ahead of Thailand's $9.57 billion, said the official from the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, who declined to be named.

China is a key buyer of natural resources in Myanmar, which remains one of the world's least developed countries despite an abundance of precious stones, oil, gas and other treasures.

While Western countries have imposed sanctions on Myanmar owing to its lack of democratic reform and human rights abuses, Asian nations have overlooked the political situation to invest in its ample natural resources.

China's projects in the country include a number of hydropower dams, which have been criticised for allegedly leading to the forced relocation of whole ethnic minority villages and are expected to irreversibly damage richly biodiverse areas.

Army-ruled since 1962, Myanmar held a controversial election in November and now has a new parliamentary system, although it is dominated by retired generals and has been criticised as a sham aimed at shoring up army rule.

While China has been the junta's main ally on the international stage and a key arms supplier, leaked diplomatic cables suggest tensions between the two countries.

A 2008 memo released by WikiLeaks late last year revealed China was fed up with the "foot-dragging" of the military junta in Myanmar on reform and feared the ruling generals could no longer protect Beijing's interests in the country.

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