President Xi: China will step up efforts to widen opening-up

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the first China International Import Expo in Shanghai, east China, Nov. 5, 2018.(Xinhua/Li Xueren)

President Xi Jinping attended the opening ceremony of the China International Import Expo in Shanghai during the morning of Nov. 5, and delivered a keynote speech. In his speech, Xi said, to widen its opening-up, China will step up efforts in the following areas:

1. Increase people's income and spending power

To correspond to the trend of consumption upgrades, China will take more proactive measures to increase people's income and spending power, as well as foster new growth areas of medium- and high-end consumption.

2. Lower tariffs

China will take further steps to lower tariffs, facilitate customs clearances, reduce institutional costs regarding imports, and speed up cross-border e-commerce and other new forms and modes of business.

3. The CIIE will feature continued success

CIIE, an event to be held annually, will feature good performance, good results, and continued success in the coming years.

4. Restrictions on foreign investment access continue to relax

China is taking substantial steps to expand financial opening-up, continue to advance opening-up in the service sector, deepen opening-up in agriculture, mining, manufacturing, and accelerate the opening-up process of industries including telecommunications, education, medical treatment and culture. In particular, the foreign equity caps are going to be raised in the education and medical service sectors where there are both considerable interest among foreign investors and shortage in domestic supply. China's imported goods and services are estimated to exceed 30 trillion U.S. dollars and 10 trillion U.S. dollars, respectively, in the next 15 years.

5. Improve laws and regulations to protect foreign investment

China will push forward with the introduction of foreign investment regulations and laws, and institute an open and transparent system involving foreign related laws. It will implement a management system based on pre-establishment national treatment and negative list.

6. Protect IPR by introducing punitive compensation system

China will protect the lawful rights and interests of foreign companies and is resolute in handing out punishmen, in a law-binding manner, for violations of the lawful rights and interests of foreign investors, particularly IPR infringements. China will enhance the credibility and efficiency of IP examination and put in place a punitive compensation system to significantly raise the cost for offenders.

7. Promote construction of Hainan Free Trade Port

China will be quick to put forward policies and institutions for building a free trade port in Hainan in a step-by-step and phased manner so as to speed up exploration of the development of free trade ports with distinct Chinese features.

8. Promote multilateral free trade negotiations

China will strive for the early conclusion of the regional comprehensive economic partnership agreement, and speed up negotiations on the China-EU investment agreement and the China-Japan-ROK free trade area.

9. Earnestly implement eight major initiatives from the 2018 FOCAC Beijing Summit

China will earnestly implement the eight major initiatives announced during the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

10. Three measures to capitalize on the important role of Shanghai and its surrounding areas in China's Opening Up

Expand the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone to include a new section.

Launch a science and technology innovation board at the Shanghai Stock Exchange and experiment with a registration system for listed companies.

Support integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta Region and make it a national strategy.   

Source: People's Daily