{"id":1411,"date":"2020-09-05T07:31:16","date_gmt":"2020-09-05T07:31:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businessner.com\/?p=1411"},"modified":"2020-09-05T07:35:08","modified_gmt":"2020-09-05T07:35:08","slug":"xi-supports-establishment-of-beijing-as-pilot-free-trade-zone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businessner.com\/xi-supports-establishment-of-beijing-as-pilot-free-trade-zone\/","title":{"rendered":"Xi Supports Establishment of Beijing as Pilot Free Trade Zone"},"content":{"rendered":"
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday (September 4) expressed his support in setting up a pilot Free Trade Zone in the capital Beijing.<\/p>\n
The leader of the world\u2019s second-largest economy said China’s central government will support the capital in creating a zone that would characterize scientific and technological innovation and opening up of the services sector and the digital economy.<\/p>\n
Xi\u2019s decision was announced at the opening of the 2020 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) held online and onsite in Beijing on Friday, September 4.<\/p>\n
\n“We will support the municipality in developing a national integrated demonstration zone for greater openness in the services sector. It will enable Beijing to take bigger, bolder steps as a trailblazer and gain more experience that would be replicable and scalable,” Xi said during a video address at the CIFTIS Global Trade in Services Summit .<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n
The new Beijing free trade zone will serve as a platform of high-standard opening-up for the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, and open up new horizons for reform and opening-up at a higher level, Xi added.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will continue to work on a negative list system for managing cross-border services trade,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
China’s pilot free trade zones attracted robust foreign investment and trade in the two quarters despite a downcast sentiment in the global market, official data reported<\/a> by state-run news agency Xinhua showed on Wednesday (September 2).<\/p>\n
The six initial pilot FTZs in the region are Shandong, Jiangsu, Guangxi, Hebei, Yunnan and Heilongjiang, as well as Shanghai’s Lingang Area, a newly launched section of the Shanghai FTZ which attracted 13.11 billion yuan ($1.9 billion) of foreign investment during the January-July period, Tang Wenhong, an official from the Ministry of Commerce said.<\/p>\n
Foreign trade in those FTZs came in at 660.76 billion yuan ($96.56 billion) in the seven-month period, accounting for 10.8 percent of the total Chinese foreign trade in the regions.<\/p>\n
The pilot FTZs have also played a positive role in stabilizing foreign trade and investment amid the sluggish international market, Tang said.<\/p>\n
CIFTIS is the first major international economic and trade event held both online and offline by China since the COVID-19 outbreak.<\/p>\n
Free Trade Zone fosters open, inclusive environment for cooperation<\/h2>\n