国内英语新闻:China's investment environment improving, not worsening

BEIJING, July 19 (Xinhua) -- While China strives to create a more open and fair business environment, the country also wants business to embrace environmental-friendly policies. The move, aimed at a sustainable growth, should not be interpreted as worsening the investment conditions, analysts note.

"Currently, there is an allegation that China's investment environment is worsening. I think it is untrue," Premier Wen Jiabao said while talking with heads of prestigious German and Chinese firms in northwest China's Xi'an city over the weekend.

Although Chinese leaders stated that China welcomes foreign investment as always, some western media have repeatedly run stories that claim China's investment environment is worsening.

Statistics, however, tell a different story. Foreign direct investment (FDI) that flowed into China in June surged 39.6 percent from a year earlier, resulting in a 19.6-percent year-on-year increase during the first half of this year.

"Foreign investment will not pour into a country where the investment environment is worsening," Wen said.

China will continue both its opening-up policy and improving its investment environment, as the government promised, but structural changes are expected because both China and the world are changing, analysts said.

For the past 30 years, China has been wooing foreign investment with many preferential policies designed to attract badly-needed capital, advanced technology and management expertise.