China has become the world's third largest outward investor, behind the United States and Japan. A growing body of literature suggests that China's regulatory framework for outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) is a determinant of the country's rising OFDI. This paper presents a holistic review of that framework, including some possibilities for its improvement. Overall, China's framework serves two objectives: to help Chinese firms become more competitive internationally and to assist the country in its development effort. In pursuing these objectives, the regulatory framework has moved from restricting, to facilitating, to supporting, to encouraging OFDI; but there are still strong elements of administrative control that make it cumbersome. State-owned enterprises (SOEs) seem to benefit particularly from the current framework when internationalizing through FDI.

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As China's outward foreign direct investment (FDI) has grown, its approach to international investment agreements (IIAs) has changed. China is now one of the world's most important outward investors, with Chinese FDI facing widespread criticism. The challenge for China is to adapt to this new configuration of interests stemming from these developments, both in terms of its national policies and the contents of its IIAs. In so doing, it is likely to influence, perhaps significantly, the further evolution of international investment law. This article deals briefly with the salient features of China's outward FDI and the policies that support it (Section A); the perception and reception of China's outward FDI in key host countries (Section B); and the changing nature of the country's approach to international investment treaties (Section C). The article concludes (Section D) with a brief review and outlook.