Foreign multinational companies are stepping up investment activities in China this year, noting its economic resilience reflected by its quick recovery from the impact of COVID-19 and its huge market potential, according to industry insiders.

Felix Gutsche, president and CEO of the China branch of Boehringer Ingelheim, said the company will continue to direct investment to China as it is "a market of the present and of the future".

Entering China 25 years ago, and as one of the fastest growing multinationals in the country, the company, headquartered in Ingelheim, Germany, plans to invest more than 450 million euros ($529 million) in China over the next five years across its main business areas, including pharmaceuticals, animal health, and biopharmaceutical contract manufacturing.

Gutsche said the investments will go into production sites, research sites and clinical development. The company has entered a fourth business in China, called healthcare solutions, to provide services with a stroke rehabilitation clinic in Shanghai.

"I think we probably all realize that the Chinese economy is projected to be the only economy that will have positive growth at the end of the year, which is a very good news, particularly in times of COVID-19," he said.

With all of its clinical programs globally coming to China, Boehringer Ingelheim is continuously investing in research collaborations.

As China has been rolling out policy measures to ensure stability in employment, finance, foreign trade, foreign investment, domestic investment and market expectations, it has been sharing markets and opportunities with foreign investors.

According to the Ministry of Commerce, foreign direct investment into the Chinese mainland grew 18.7 percent year-on-year to $12.3 billion in August, the fifth successive monthly increase.

Herbalife Nutrition, of the US, said it will open a Herbalife Nutrition Product Innovation Center by end of the year in Shanghai, its first product innovation center globally, with investments totaling $14.7 million.

It has accelerated new product launches in China since the second half of last year and expects to double its new products launched in China within five years, owing to the huge consumer market.

Danish biopharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk began its China Essentials program in April, which is aimed at boosting its R&D abilities and accelerating innovative drug registration in China.

Christine Zhou, senior vice-president of Novo Nordisk and president of its China arm, said the company is impressed with China's efforts and achievements in containing COVID-19 and the resilience of the Chinese economy.

Gutsche, of Boehringer Ingelheim, said China has made huge advances in recent years in innovation and investment climate, and he thinks within three to five years that many innovations will be produced in China, not only for the Chinese, but also potentially for the global market.