The 2019/2020 Annual Awards for China's Outstanding Foreign-invested Enterprises in Shenzhen were unveiled Jan. 8, Shenzhen Economic Daily reported over the weekend.

The annual awards with a history of 31 years, sponsored by the Shenzhen Association of Enterprises with Foreign Investment (SZAEFI), are recognized as a valuable guide for foreign investors.

The 2019/2020 Annual Awards have listed Shenzhen's top 10 foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs) leading by revenue of 2019, top 10 tax-paying FIEs of 2019, and 163 FIEs that perform excellently in both revenue and tax paying. The 2020 Awards of Harmonious Labor Relations were given to 89 FIEs, 2020 Awards of Quality Progress to 73, 2020 Awards of Safety and Environmental Protection to 70.

Morea Marco, general manager of Unipoint Inc., told Shenzhen Economic Daily, "This award is a high recognition of Unipoint Inc. of Bosch Group, showing that we are on the right track leading to the right goals."

Despite the pandemic in 2020, the growth of foreign investment in Shenzhen was still higher than the national average. The data show that in the first 10 months of 2020, China's actual utilization of foreign capital was US$115.09 billion, an increase of 3.9 percent year on year. During the same period, Shenzhen's actual utilization of foreign capital was US$7.055 billion, accounting for 6.13 percent of the country's total and an increase of 7.58 percent year on year, which is much higher than the national average.

Hirokazu Sasahara, managing director of Shenzhen Murata Technology Co. Ltd., one of the top 10 FIEs leading by revenue of 2019, said, "The accelerating development of 5G applications in Shenzhen has given us great opportunities. The group aims at increasing production of 5G products in Shenzhen. With the effective COVID-19 control and better social environment in China, we are very confident in the market and our operations in Shenzhen."

Since its foundation in 1989, SZAEFI has played an important role in promoting foreign investment in China, guiding the development of member enterprises, encouraging them to fulfill their social responsibilities and further improving the business environment.

Guo Xiaohui, executive chairman of SZAEFI, said, "The high-quality development of enterprises and the economy depends on the high-quality associations. An association should help a group of enterprises grow, which will then bring along the development of the industry."