Investments Safety
http://www.freeimages.com/photo/1041448
|
China
to ease investment rules in free trade zones
|
|
English.news.cn
2014-12-28 18:26:30
|
BEIJING, Dec. 28
(Xinhua) -- The Chinese government has been authorized to ease investment rules
in three new free trade zones (FTZs) after top legislature gave the go ahead
during a bi-monthly meeting on Sunday.
The new zones will be
located in south China's Guangdong Province, southeast China's Fujian Province
and north China's Tianjin Municipality. The only FTZ currently operating is in
Shanghai.
The resolution on
temporary adjustment of regulations for administrative approvals in the new
FTZs was passed through a vote at the bi-monthly session of the National
People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee.
According to the
resolution, foreign companies will not need government approvals to set up
ventures in these FTZs, shut down and merge ventures or change their business
purpose. Instead, they will only need to report business plans to the
authorities.
These preferential
policies conflict with 12 articles out of four laws on foreign companies,
Sino-foreign joint ventures and Taiwan investors so the legislature authorized
the State Council to adjust the implementation in the FTZs.
The temporary adjustment
will begin in March next year and will last for three years, according to the
resolution.
After three years, the
State Council will run an assessment on the adjustment and decide whether to
propose a law revision or return to the original regulations.
Earlier this month, the
State Council announce that China will establish three new FTZs and expand the
Shanghai FTZ, in an attempt to reform the administrative system and improve the
market environment.
Since the launch of the
Shanghai FTZ in September 2013, the government has used it to test a number of
new policies including negative list management on foreign investment,
preferential trade and financial policies, and opening up more industries to
foreign investors.
"The practice [in
Shanghai FTZ] can be copied and applied elsewhere," said Commerce Minister
Gao Hucheng, when explaining the draft resolution on behalf of the State
Council to lawmakers on Friday.
Through the expansion of
the Shanghai FTZ and the addition of new zones, reform policies can be tested
in a larger geographic area and on a bigger scale, he said.
According to the
resolution, the Guangdong FTZ, with a total area of 116.2 square km, will include
zones in the cities of Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Zhuhai.
The Tianjin FTZ, with a
total area of 119.9 square km, will consist of three sections around the
Tianjin Port, Tianjin Airport and the Binhai New Area industrial park.
The Fujian FTZ, with a
total area of 118.04 square km, will include industrial areas in the provincial
capital of Fuzhou, the city of Xiamen, and Pingtan, a new industrial park
targeting Taiwan investment.
An area of 91.94 square
km will also be added to the Shanghai FTZ.
No comments:
Post a Comment