China Daily:
Jiangsu has been a pioneer for national opening-up. What new steps will Jiangsu take to promote higher-level opening-up and open economy? Thank you.
Fang Wei:
As we often say, Jiangsu thrives on reform and opening-up. Opening-up is our defining nature. Now, our goal of high-level opening-up is to build a two-way open hub with global appeal. I want to elaborate this with three keywords.
The first keyword is "hub." Jiangsu is located at an important intersection of the Belt and Road Initiative's trade routes. To the west, our railway links directly to Europe with a total of 24 China-Europe and China-Asia railway routes in operation. To the east, our shipping routes connect to major global ports, welcoming over 26,000 ships annually. Jiangsu has emerged as a crucial transit hub for trade with Japan, South Korea, Southeast Asia, Central Asia and Europe. Jiangsu boasts one of the most diverse manufacturing sectors and one of the most comprehensive industrial chains in China, with the operating income of six industries including machinery, electronics, light industry and textiles exceeding one trillion yuan for each. Our exports of the "new trio," namely, electric vehicles, lithium-ion batteries and photovoltaic products, account for 18.4% of the country's total exports, ranking first nationwide. These exports serve as pivotal nodes in both domestic and international industrial cycles. Benefited from a huge market size, Jiangsu's trade with other parts of the country as well as the world reached nearly 10 trillion yuan. Our ports handle over 3.5 billion metric tons of cargo annually with foreign trade cargo throughput up to 600 million metric tons. The two figures account for one-fifth and one-eighth of the country's total, respectively. Therefore, Jiangsu stands as a pillar and bridge boosting the dual circulation of domestic and international markets. Leveraging these strengths, we will strive to expand domestic demand, promote further opening-up, position the province as a hub for higher-level opening-up, a hub for industry and supply chains and a hub strategically driving the dual circulation of domestic and international markets.
The second keyword is "two-way opening up." In the past, Jiangsu focused primarily on opening up eastward, dominated by exports and attracting foreign investment. The province has increased its efforts to expand opening up to both domestic and international markets, pursue opening up both eastward and westward, place equal emphasis on imports and exports, and integrate moves to bring in outside resources with the drive to go global. Currently, Jiangsu's foreign trade dependence degree, the ratio of foreign trade volume to the province's GDP, stands at 40.9%, with a significant portion coming from emerging markets. The proportions of foreign-funded enterprises and private enterprises are nearly equal. In addition, open parks have served as key platforms for Jiangsu's push for a "two-way opening up" strategy. The 158 development zones at or above the provincial level have contributed to half of the province's economic output, 80% of foreign investment, and 80% of imports and exports. For example, Kunshan, a county-level city in the province, has fully leveraged the role of its economic and technological development zone and comprehensive bonded zone to cultivate an open economy. Its foreign trade has accounted for one-seventh of the province's total. Suzhou Industrial Park, a vital window for China's reform and opening up, will mark its 30th anniversary this year. The province is accelerating efforts to deepen trials on opening up and innovation. Since the establishment of the Jiangsu Pilot Free Trade Zone five years ago, 379 independent innovations have been introduced. Efforts have been made to promote opening up and innovation throughout the biomedicine industry chain and cross-border data flow, as well as pilot programs to facilitate services for foreign nationals in the province. These efforts are expected to further enhance the park's leading role in the future.
The third keyword is "globally attractive." Jiangsu has actively fostered international relations, boasting 363 friendly cities in 67 countries and regions, ranking first nationwide. The province also stands as one of the regions in China with substantial foreign investment, hosting 43,000 foreign-invested enterprises. Over 400 Fortune Global 500 companies have invested in Jiangsu. In recent years, foreign-funded enterprises have increased their investment, expressing their faith in Jiangsu with practical actions. Jiangsu is now home to 395 regional headquarters and functional institutions, as well as 293 foreign-invested research and development centers. For example, Taicang, a county-level city in the province, hosts more than 500 German-funded enterprises and is known as a hub for German companies. Looking ahead, we will step up institutional openness and innovation to attract more global capital, technology, and talent to Jiangsu, gaining new advantages in developing an open economy at a higher level.
