The implementation of China's foreign-investment law has optimized the business environment and effectively guaranteed the country's utilization of foreign capital amid the COVID-19 headwinds, a spokesperson has said.

Since the law came into effect on January 1, 2020, foreign investment to China has risen by 4.5 percent year on year in U.S. dollar terms, hitting a record high, said Zang Tiewei, a spokesperson for the Legislative Affairs Commission of the National People's Congress Standing Committee.

The country has become the largest foreign-capital recipient in the world, and 51,000 new foreign-funded firms were established in 2020, Zang said.

The law provides foreign capital with easier market access and reduces the restrictions on investors. Last year, nearly 9,000 new Sino-foreign joint ventures were set up.

It also guarantees equal treatment of foreign firms in government procurement activities and standard-setting, with about 100 foreign-funded firms participating in the formulation and revision of national standards last year.

Procedures related to the establishment and alteration of foreign-funded firms are simplified and the rights and interests of foreign investors are better protected with complaint mechanisms optimized, said Zang.