China's controversial anti-terrorism law could be passed as soon as the end of this month, state news agency Xinhua said on Monday, legislation that has drawn concern in Western capitals for its cyber-provisions.

The draft law, which could require technology firms to install "backdoors" in products or to hand over sensitive information such as encryption keys to the government, has also been criticized by some Western business groups.

U.S. President Barack Obama has said that he had raised concern about the law directly with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The White House and U.S. State Department did not immediately respond on Monday to requests for comment on the latest development regarding the anti-terrorism law.