China vows wider market access
Print Edition
CHINA will continue to broaden market access and open up its service sector as part of efforts to keep foreign investment stable amid the COVID-19 epidemic, the country’s commerce minister said yesterday.
Noting that the pandemic has inevitably brought challenges to cross-border investment, Minister of Commerce Zhong Shan said at a press conference that the country will take various measures to stabilize foreign investment.
China will roll out incentives to attract foreign investment into the country’s central and western regions as well as the old industrial bases in the northeast regions, which have abundant development potential with the help of government supportive measures, Zhong said.
The country will expand the scope of pilot free trade zones, give them greater autonomy in their reform, and further accelerate the construction of a free trade port in south China’s Hainan Province, Zhong said. Once completed, it will become the world’s largest free trade port with an area of 35,000 square kilometers.
China has set up 18 pilot free trade zones, the foreign capital use of which accounts for 15 percent of the total nationwide.
The ministry will also focus on implementing the Foreign Investment Law, creating a fair and competitive market environment for foreign investors, he said.
The landmark legislation took effect on the first day of this year. Under the law, foreign-invested enterprises will be granted access to government procurement markets through fair competition.
China has abundant and high-quality labor resources, a mature and supportive industrial system and a market with a population of 1.4 billion, all of which are advantages in attracting foreign investment, Zhong said. “No smart entrepreneurs will give up the huge Chinese market,” he said.
The country will also explore emerging markets while maintaining ties with traditional ones amid virus-hit global demand, Zhong said, citing increasing trade volume with countries along the Belt and Road.
Official data showed China’s trade of goods with Belt and Road countries rose 0.9 percent year on year in the first four months when total foreign trade contracted 4.9 percent.
China will actively expand imports, especially with the help of the third China International Import Expo scheduled from November 5 to 10, said Zhong. The ministry also said that measures to cushion trade firms from pandemic shocks are filtering through, as domestic sales volume of export firms grew 17 percent in April.
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