Overseas firms attracted by China's business environment

Foreign companies are attracted to China due to the optimized business environment in the country, Economic Daily reported on Tuesday.

Newly approved foreign-invested enterprises increased 102.7 percent to 41,331 in the first eight months and the actual use of foreign investment reached $86.5 billion, up 6.13 percent in the same period, latest data from Ministry of Commerce showed.

China promised non-stop effort in reform and opening up and commitment to an open economy. Last month, the State Council, China's cabinet, vowed more measures to facilitate the delivery of major foreign-invested projects, lower tariffs on some imported goods and streamline customs clearance procedures at a faster pace.

Premier Li Keqiang has emphasized on many occasions the pledge to widen market access, accord equal treatment to Chinese and foreign companies, more effectively protect intellectual property rights, and better facilitate foreign investments in China.

As Japan-based electronics firm Omron shut down its Suzhou plant in July, the company, on the other hand, expanded its investment of 1 billion yen ($8.84 million) in Shanghai. The newspaper said Omron showed its confidence in China as the move was taken to improve its investment structure in Chinese market amid local competition and increasing labor cost.

Other foreign companies are also riding the opening-up wave. US electric car startup Tesla landed a deal of building a new auto plant in Shanghai, with 500,000 vehicles to be rolled off the line for each year; German chemical giant BASF will invest $10 billion to build a Verbund chemical production site in Guangdong, where ExxonMobil, the largest oil and gas company in the United States, plans to invest $10 billion in petrochemical projects as well.

Economic Daily said foreign investment continued its growth momentum and had more confidence in the world second-largest economy, as it cited data from Ministry of Commerce showing that the actual use of foreign investment in high technology industry has increased 6.6 percent from January to August.

Xinhua contributed to this story.