Phoenix TV:

This year's government work report proposes promoting foreign-funded enterprises in China to reinvest in China and expand local production. What specific considerations and measures are there in this regard? In addition, what policies will be introduced next to attract foreign investment? And what new opportunities are there for foreign businesses investing in China? Thank you.

Shen Danyang:

I will answer these questions. China has always paid great attention to attracting and supporting foreign investment in the country. As of the end of last year, foreign investment in China in actual use had exceeded 700 billion yuan for 16 consecutive years, remaining among the top globally. Moreover, the revenue and total profits of foreign-funded enterprises in China have generally shown a growth trend. Last year, foreign investment in China from many countries and sectors saw significant increases. For example, Switzerland grew by 66.8%, the United Kingdom grew by 15.9%, e-commerce services grew by 75%, medical devices grew by 42.1%, and aerospace grew by 22.9%. And provinces such as Guangdong, Hainan, Anhui and Shanxi all posted double-digit growth in utilizing foreign investment.

This year's report suggests promoting foreign-funded businesses to reinvest in the country and expand local production, reflecting the Chinese government's firm resolve and confidence in continuously advancing high-standard opening up and welcoming multinational companies to deeply cultivate their business in China over the long term. Last year, relevant departments issued a tax credit policy for overseas investors to directly invest their profits, among measures encouraging foreign enterprises to reinvest in China. The tax credit policy can be enjoyed in combination with the previously issued deferred tax policy for reinvestment. This policy is of high value and has proved very popular. Currently, many international investors have already used this policy.

In fact, as one of the ideal investment destinations for global capital, China has always had a strong appeal to foreign investors. According to recent surveys by some foreign institutions into multinational enterprises, more than 90% of interviewed companies said they will continue investing in China, and nearly 70% of corporate executives have confidence in China's development over the next three to five years. The Chinese government hopes to further expand business opportunities for foreign investment in China and further enhance investment attractiveness through continuously optimizing the investment environment and investment policies. Based on the current situation, foreign investors in China can benefit from four new business opportunities. What are these four business opportunities? The first business opportunity is new opportunities in China's super-sized market. Last year, our retail sales of consumer goods exceeded 50 trillion yuan for the first time, ranking among the top in the global retail market in scale. The huge consumer goods market needs more high-quality supplies, and foreign investors can definitely contribute in this area. The second business opportunity is the new opportunities in the development of the service sector. Last year, the proportion of per capita spending of Chinese residents on services reached 46.1%, and this number is still increasing. As was just mentioned, this year China will implement initiatives to increase supplies and upgrade quality within the service sector, expand market access and open new fields in the service sector, and will provide a consistent source of new opportunities for enterprises of all kinds, including foreign-funded enterprises. The third business opportunity is the new opportunities presented by the innovation ecosystem. China has complete and efficient industrial and supply chains, and is building a new industrial ecosystem focusing on areas such as the digital economy and green and low-carbon development. Recently, many foreign-funded enterprises have increased investment in areas such as AI and energy in China, and built and launched new R&D centers, indicating that China has gradually become an important innovation hub for multinational companies. The fourth new business opportunity is the new opportunities in the pacesetters for opening up. This year, China will deepen the strategy of upgrading pilot free trade zones across the board, and carry out the work plan for high-quality development of state-level economic development zones. Also, there was a topic that many of you were concerned about recently — that is Hainan, somewhere I previously worked for many years. After the implementation of island-wide special customs operations, Hainan will also provide more preferential conditions and development opportunities for foreign-funded enterprises to engage in processing and manufacturing and conduct trade and investment more unimpededly and conveniently.

There are also many other opportunities, but these are the main ones. Thank you.

Shou Xiaoli:

Thank you to all the speakers and friends from the media for your participation. Today's briefing is hereby concluded. Goodbye.

Shen Danyang:

Thank you all.

Translated and edited by Chen Xinyan, Zhang Jiaqi, Liao Jiaxin, Zhang Yuxin, You Jiaxin, Liu Caiyi, Wang Ziteng, Li Xiao, Cui Can, Yang Chuanli, Xu Kailin, Zhang Tingting, Yan Bin, Li Huiru, Liu Sitong, Zhou Jing, Fan Junmei, Zhang Rui, Wang Yanfang, Gong Yingchun, Liu Qiang, Huang Shan, David Ball, Jay Birbeck, and Tudor Finneran. In case of any discrepancy between the English and Chinese texts, the Chinese version is deemed to prevail.