BEIJING, June 16 (Xinhua) -- China's top economic planner approved seven fixed-asset investment projects with their combined investment totaling 129.8 billion yuan (about 18.35 billion U.S. dollars) in May, an official said Tuesday.

The projects were mainly in the transportation and energy sectors, Meng Wei, spokesperson with the National Development and Reform Commission, told a press conference.

Next, the commission will accelerate the implementation of investment plans within the central budget in a bid to scale up effective investment, Meng said.

Fixed-asset investment includes spending in infrastructure, property, machinery and other physical assets.

Official data showed that China's fixed-asset investment declined 6.3 percent year on year to 19.92 trillion yuan in the first five months, narrowing by 4 percentage points from that in the January-April period.