Foreign businesses fret as China fast-tracks investment law

China is fast-tracking a foreign investment law at an unprecedented pace to meet Washington's demands on trade, but businesses fear that time to review and raise objections on a crucial piece of legislation has been cut short.

The law will eliminate the requirement for foreign enterprises to transfer proprietary technology to Chinese joint-venture partners.

It also includes other steps to level the business playing field that Western trading partners have long demanded.

China's parliament is expected to vote on the legislation in March -- barely two months after debating a first draft.

"It is indeed unprecedented that the bill is being moved by the NPC (National People's Congress) at such a fast pace," Wang Jiangyu, an expert on Chinese law at the National University of Singapore, told AFP.

"Normally it would take one to three years for a bill to be passed and signed into law."