In the years leading up to 2020, China’s financial industry has taken milestone steps towards greater openness, with the announcement of 50 opening-up measures such as scraping foreign ownership caps on various financial institutions including banks, securities, funds, futures and insurance.
A revised catalog of industries that encourages foreign investment was released in 2019. The 2019 version widens the scope of foreign investment opportunities in high-end, smart and green manufacturing. Before the end of 2020, a new version of the catalog will be issued to further expand the areas concerning foreign investment.
Intellectual property rights: “We protect the lawful rights and interests of foreign companies, and are resolute in meting out, in a law-binding manner, punishment for violations of the lawful rights and interests of foreign investors, particularly IPR infringements,” Xi assured in 2018, adding “We will enhance the credibility and efficiency of IP examination, and put in place a punitive compensation system to significantly raise the cost for offenders.”
On January 1, 2019, China’s Supreme People’s Court instituted a special court to hear intellectual property rights appeals that require more expertise.
On October 17, 2020, Chinese lawmakers completed the revision of the Patent Law, China’s fourth amendment to the Patent Law. A series of amendments and improvements have been made to buttress the protection of the legitimate rights and interests of the patentees, promoting the implementation and application of patents, and improving the patent authorization system. Business environment: At the second CIIE, President Xi pledged China will continue to foster an enabling business environment that is based on market principles, governed by law, and up to international standards. “We will give foreign investments greater market access to more sectors, shorten the negative list further, and improve institutions for investment promotion and protection for information reporting,” Xi said.
On January 1, 2020, China’s Foreign Investment Law and the regulation on optimizing the business environment were officially implemented to unleash the productive forces and promote high-quality development. The number of sectors that are off-limits for foreign investors has been cut down to 33 in the 2020 version of the negative list from 40 in the 2019 version. China has also unveiled its 2020 negative list for foreign investment in pilot free trade zones, shrinking the number of prohibited industries to 30 from 37.
Belt and Road: “China will follow the principle of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, the philosophy of open, green, and clean cooperation, and a high-standard, people-centered, and sustainable approach to promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation,” said Xi at the second CIIE. China has signed 200 cooperation documents with 138 countries and 30 international organizations to jointly build the Belt and Road, and jointly carried out more than 2,000 cooperation projects; the cumulative total of trade in goods between China and countries along the route exceeded $7.8 trillion, and direct investment exceeds $110 billion.
–The Daily Mail-CGTN News exchange item
