What is Behind the Recent Surge in Patenting in China?

Abstract

By identifying the features of patent applications filed by 22 countries at the Chinese Patent Office from 1996 to2003, this study finds that the main factors accounting for the recent patent boom in China can be attributed tothe second revision of the Chinese patent law in 2000, the intensification of R&D expenditure both in China andthe rest of the world, and the increasing foreign direct investment flowing into China.