China rejects 'unfounded hype' after GE spying accusation

China's foreign ministry has complained the country is unfairly accused of stealing technology after a former General Electric Co. engineer and his Chinese business partner were charged with industrial spying. The foreign ministry said Wednesday that it had no details of the case against Xiaoqing Zheng and Zhaoxi Zhang. But it said it appeared to be a "common commercial case" that should not be "over-interpreted and politicized."

Zheng and Zhang are accused of receiving money from the Chinese government and coordinating with officials to make agreements with official institutions to develop turbine technologies. The foreign ministry statement complained Americans have "made unfounded accusations" against China over innovation. It called on critics to "stop unfounded hype."