BEIJING -- The quality and efficiency of China's intellectual property (IP) services have been improved over the past year, according to data released by the National Intellectual Property Administration (NIPA) at a press conference Tuesday.

In 2019, more than 1.4 million invention patent applications were filed in China. A total of 453,000 invention patents were authorized, up 4.8 percent year-on-year.

Huawei Technologies Co Ltd had 4,510 invention patents authorized last year, ranking first on the Chinese mainland. SINOPEC ranked second with 2,883 authorized invention patents and smartphone maker Oppo based in Guangdong ranked third with 2,614.

By the end of last year, China had 13.3 invention patents per 10,000 people. There were 6.41 million trademarks registered last year, and the total number of effectively registered trademarks exceeded 25 million, with every 4.9 market entities owning one registered trademark on average.

While the numbers of patents and registered trademarks were on the rise, the period for high-value patents examination and the average time for trademark registration have been shortened, according to NIPA.

In 2019, the number of invention patent applications filed in China by foreign applicants reached 157,000, up 6 percent from the previous year; and the number of foreign trademark applications in China reached 255,000, an increase of 4.7 percent year-on-year.

Market entities from 186 countries and regions applied for patents and trademarks in China in 2019, an increase of 12 over the previous year.

This continued growth of foreign IP applications shows the confidence of foreign investors in the Chinese market as well as China's progress in IP protection and business environment, said Ge Shu, a senior official with the NIPA.