China’s State Council has unveiled a new raft of policy measures in a bid to bolster foreign trade and investment in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
On 12 August the State Council issued the “Opinions on Further Effectively Performing Work for the Stabilisation of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment” (关于进一步做好稳外贸稳外资工作的意见).
The State Council said that “at present the international pandemic continues to spread and the global economy is in severe decline,” prompting the release of 15 policy measures across a total of four areas, including:
- Expanding fiscal, tax and financial support. Effectively employing the role of export credit insurance, actively protecting against the risk that orders are cancelled prior to shipping. Supporting qualified regions in reduplicating or expanding “credit insurance + guarantee” financing models. Employing multiple methods to provide increased credit support for foreign trade enterprise financing. Further expanding export loans for micro, small and medium foreign trade enterprises. Providing financial support to key foreign investment companies, providing commensurate re-financing and re-discount special quotas to foreign trade enterprises. Reducing the threshold for foreign invested R&D centres to enjoy preferential policies. Encouraging foreign investors to come to China to establish R&D centres.
- Develop new conditions and models for trade. Adding a raft of new trial sites for market procurement trade methods, and striving to expand the total number to around 30. Supporting cross-border e-commerce platforms, cross-border logistics development and the establishment of overseas warehouses. Expanding credit cultivation capability for foreign trade comprehensive services companies. Expanding channels for foreign trade to go online, driving “One Country, One Development Online,” supporting expansion of the market for small and medium-sized foreign trade companies, and helping export enterprises to match with a greater overseas buyers.
- Raise the level of convenience for customs procedures and exchanges of personnel. Further driving the standardisation and reduction of import and export compliance costs. Promoting “one-stop sunshine prices” for fee collection at qualified ports of entry, expanding the strength of technological trade measure consulting services. Under the precondition that disease-prevention requirements are strictly implemented, continuing to negotiate the establishment “rapid channels” with relevant countries, and providing convenience to personnel exchanges. Increasing international passenger flight volume in stages, and appropriately increasing the number of civilian flights with key sources of investment.
- Support key industries and key enterprises. Guiding the gradient transfer of the processing trade, cultivating a raft of processing trade industrial zones in eastern China, mid-western China and north-eastern China. Further expanding the vigour of support for the exporters of labour intensive products. “One Enterprise One Policy” to help large-scale backbone foreign trade enterprises resolve difficulties. Expanding land usage and other service protections for foreign investment projects on an equal basis. Driving increased convenience for the administration and services of hi-tech enterprises, and encouraging foreign capital to be invested more in hi-tech industries.
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