Intellectual property rights must be protected: Locke

GUANGZHOU: China should do more to protect intellectual property in order to encourage more investment from companies in the United States and boost innovation of Chinese enterprises, US Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said yesterday.

Speaking at a forum on innovation and intellectual property in the southern city of Guangzhou, Locke also praised China's progress in terms of the protection of intellectual property rights (IPR) in the past few years.

"China has taken several steps in the past to protect the IPR of the US and other foreign companies operating in the country," he said.