China's advantages have become important drivers of multinational companies' growth in China, and also key factors that help these companies build competitiveness globally, an official said on Tuesday.

Vice Commerce Minister Ling Ji made the remarks at a press conference while outlining new trends in foreign investment in China.

Foreign companies are paying greater attention to China's highly developed industrial ecosystem, world-class infrastructure, efficient supply chains, vibrant innovation ecosystem and large pool of skilled talent, rather than traditional factors such as labor and land, said the official.

Ling also noted China's changing role for multinationals. In the past, many such companies achieved quick success by bringing in capital, mature technologies, business models and management expertise, he said.

Today, with its intense market competition and diverse consumer use cases, China is increasingly serving as a "training ground" or "gym" for multinational companies to strengthen their global competitiveness, Ling explained.

"Many executives of multinational companies have told us, 'If you can succeed in the Chinese market, you can achieve even greater success elsewhere in the world,'" Ling said.

This shift is also changing the way foreign companies operate in China, Ling noted. Previously, many foreign-invested companies built their own R&D and supply-chain systems in China. Now, more of them are becoming deeply integrated into China's broader industrial ecosystem and working more closely with local partners, he said.

The latest foreign investment figures point to continued confidence in the Chinese market. In the first seven months of 2026, a total of 37,711 new foreign-invested enterprises were established nationwide, up 4.4 percent year on year, while foreign direct investment in high-tech industries surged 32.7 percent year on year.

Source: Xinhua