Premier Li Keqiang called for efforts to further open up and stimulate the market as he visited the Ministry of Commerce and the General Administration of Customs on May 21.

While visiting the monitoring and command center of the General Administration of Customs, the Premier urged customs to improve service with modern information technology and to cut the cost and time it takes for import and export clearance.

He also asked customs to crack down on smuggling, block foreign garbage and poor-quality products, especially food that fails to meet quarantine standards, from entering China.

At the Ministry of Commerce, he said it is important to improve the business environment for foreign investment, introduce the experience of pilot free trade zones to the whole country and keep China as an attraction for foreign capital investment.

The Premier also chaired a symposium with senior officials from the two ministries. He said the opening-up policy over the past 40 years has effectively promoted reform and development, so further opening-up is an inevitable strategic choice for China in the new era.

Higher-level opening-up will drive reform, stimulate the market and promote high-quality development, he said.

While expanding domestic consumption, Premier Li said, foreign trade should be transformed and upgraded. More key technologies, as well as quality products and services, meeting the needs for consumption upgrade should be imported to accelerate the upgrade of domestic industries.

Enterprises should be encouraged to participate in international market competition, boost innovation, improve their products, cultivate new drivers for foreign trade growth and open up diversified markets, the Premier said.

He urged efforts to revise the negative list for foreign investment at an earlier date, further broaden market access and implement more effective measures to attract foreign investors.

Efforts should be made to step up intellectual property protection and create a level playing field based on laws and regulations while improving China’s technology and management in related fields, Premier Li noted.

Promoting the healthy development of foreign investment will enable China to participate in international cooperation in greater breadth and depth, the Premier added.

He also stressed the need to uphold a multilateral trading system and push forward the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment with more countries to effectively fend off and address risks. This will achieve common development in an open and benign competitive environment.