China has set its sights on attracting and utilizing more foreign investment this year, as outlined in the Government Work Report submitted to the national legislature for deliberation on Sunday, according to experts and national political advisers. The report recommends several measures to achieve this goal, including expanding market access, opening up the modern services sector, ensuring national treatment and improving services for foreign-funded companies, and facilitating the launch of landmark foreign-funded projects.
To further integrate into the global economy and attract more foreign investment, China will take active steps to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership and other high-standard economic and trade agreements, and steadily expand institutional opening-up by proactively adopting relevant rules, regulations, and standards.
Experts believe that China’s commitment to creating a better business environment for foreign companies this year is an acceleration of the establishment of a unified national market, which will ensure the legitimate rights and interests of foreign investors. Last year, the government introduced new policy measures to encourage global companies to establish research and development centers in China.
Many companies are already deepening their integration into the country’s economic growth, such as Siemens Healthineers, which plans to open a laboratory diagnostics plant in Shanghai later this year with 3 billion yuan ($434.32 million) of investment. This move will not only strengthen the local industry chain but also contribute to the high-quality development of China’s healthcare industry.
According to Raymund Chao, a member of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and global consultancy PwC’s chairman for the Asia-Pacific and China, the digital economy, green development, and technological innovation have become new engines to speed up global economic recovery. Due to the high growth rate achieved by Chinese companies in these fields, China is expected to play a bigger role in attracting global talent and foreign investment in these areas in the next stage.
Aside from attracting foreign investment, China’s high-level opening-up will also provide strategic guidance and policy support for Chinese multinational corporations to become global leading brands, said Ding Shizhong, a CPPCC National Committee member and board chairman of Anta Group, a sportswear manufacturer based in Jinjiang, Fujian province.