CHINA-ECONOMY: STATE COUNCIL EXECUTIVE MEETING CALLS FOR STABILISING FOREIGN INVESTMENT
|
A State Council Executive Meeting convened by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in Beijing on March 10 called for more efforts to stabilise foreign investment. Li Keqiang said “[W]e must implement targeted policies to arrest the slide in foreign trade and foreign investment.” The State Council meeting then decided to: (i) Shorten the negative list of sectors restricting foreign investment and expand the list encouraging foreign investment; (ii) Refund all export tax rebates in full and on time, except for those for energy intensive, polluting, and natural resource-related products; and (iii) Encourage financial institutions to increase foreign trade loans by deferring principal and interest payments. The very next day on March 11, the NDRC published a policy focusing on stabilising foreign investment. Stating that it also wants to boost foreign investment, the NDRC said big investments will get some benefits. The NDRC will coordinate with other ministries to resolve thorny issues for investments of over USD 1 billion in the manufacturing and high-tech sectors.
|