More support pledged for e-commerce

China will scale up measures to support the growth of cross-border e-commerce in a bid to spur the upgrading of domestic industries and boost employment, the State Council decided at an executive meeting on July 3.

More cities will be encouraged to launch cross-border e-commerce pilot zones on top of the 35 existing zones nationwide, according to a statement released after the meeting. Retail goods exported from the pilot zones will be exempted from value-added tax, it said, adding that the authorities will introduce simpler methods for verifying and collecting corporate income tax.

Supporting the growth of cross-border e-commerce is an important move in keeping with the new industrial revolution and the upgrading of exports and imports, it said. Those at the meeting also recognized the role of e-commerce in promoting growth of the express delivery industry, creating jobs and boosting innovation and entrepreneurship.

China’s imports and exports from cross-border e-commerce were worth 134 billion yuan ($19.5 billion) last year, up 50 percent year-on-year, according to the General Administration of Customs.

The government will offer incentives for the building of platforms that serve the development of cross-border e-commerce and logistics services, the statement said. More work will be done to establish, improve and expand overseas warehouses, it added.

The meeting also pledged to introduce measures to guide e-commerce platforms to step up the protection of intellectual property rights. Meanwhile, more educational institutions will be encouraged to open related majors to provide the talent needed for the development of e-commerce and logistics services.

The government will continue to make its oversight prudent and accommodating and step up crackdowns on fake products to protect the rights of businesses and consumers. International cooperation will be boosted, and the country will play an active role in the framing of related international regulations, the statement said.

Pilot FTZs urged to expand access

Measures to further widen market access in China’s pilot free trade zones, especially for the services sector, are being considered, according to a decision taken at the cabinet’s executive meeting on July 3.

The meeting urged greater strides in opening up pilot FTZs so they can implement more measures that could be promoted in other areas.

Authorities at the provincial, regional and municipal level have been urged to delegate more administrative authority to the pilot free trade zones, especially in investment approval and market access. The reform of separating business licenses and operation permits will be fully implemented in all pilot zones, a statement released after the meeting said.

The meeting also called for full implementation of this year’s edition of the negative list for foreign investment applicable to the pilot free trade zones and necessary adjustments to related laws and regulations.

It also proposed concrete measures to promote innovation in trade facilitation and integration between different means of transportation. Pilot programs focused on competition policy will be launched in the zones as part of efforts to level the playing field. The meeting also called for the role of pilot FTZs in reform and innovation to be further leveraged to facilitate development of their host cities and surrounding regions.