On Wednesday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said that the Chinese government has been asking Chinese companies to strictly abide by local laws and regulations in their operations in response to a report about Chinese workers building a factory in Brazil for BYD.

"As we have stressed more than once the Chinese government attaches great importance to protecting the lawful rights and interests of workers," Guo told a regular news briefing in Beijing.

A Reuters report cited a labor inspector saying on Wednesday that electric vehicle producer BYD brought hundreds of Chinese workers on irregular visas to build a factory in Brazil and the company has pledged to comply with local labor laws for the workers remaining in the country.

"China stands ready to continue working with Brazil, under the principle of equality, mutual benefit and win-win cooperation, to further enhance exchanges and cooperation in various fields," Guo said.