He Yadong: Friends from the press, good afternoon. Welcome to the regular press conference of the Ministry of Commerce. I’d like to start by sharing a piece of information with you.

This is about China’s outbound investment cooperation from January to July, 2024.

From January to July, 2024, China’s non-financial direct investment reached USD83.55 billion, up 16.2% year on year. Chinese businesses made non-financial direct investment in BRI partner countries worth USD17.94 billion, up 7.7% year on year.

From January to July, 2024, the turnover of completed overseas contracted projects amounted to USD86.28 billion, up 6.6% year on year, with newly signed contracts worth USD133.95 billion, up 25% year on year. In Belt and Road countries, Chinese enterprises reported USD69.88 billion in the turnover of completed overseas contracted projects and USD110.11 billion in newly signed contracts, respectively accounting for 5.2% and 22.3% of the total over the period.

So much about the information I want to share. Now I’d like to take your questions.

The floor is open.

Yicai: Recently, MOFCOM and six other government departments released an announcement on further promoting automobile trade-in. What’s the early progress of automobile trade-in? And what are the policy adjustments?

At the end of April, seven departments including MOFCOM and the Ministry of Finance jointly published the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of Subsidies for Automobile Trade-In. For the last three months, relevant policies have begun to deliver, and the number of applications has grown at a faster pace especially during the last two months. As of this noon (August 22), MOFCOM’s automobile trade-in information platform has received more than 680,000 applications for automobile scrapping allowance, with the number of newly added applications in the last month reaching about 340,000. The automobile trade-in policy has led to a rapid growth in recycling end-of-life automobiles. From January to July, the number of recycled end-of-life automobiles reached 3.509 million, up 37.4% year on year, and the year-on-year increases were 55.6% in May, 72.9% in June, and 93.7% in July respectively.

Recently, in order to further deliver the policies, the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council decided to earmark ultra-long special treasury bonds to support consumer goods trade-in. As for the automobile trade-in, policy adjustments are as follows.

First, the subsidies have been increased. Subsidies for trade-ins of new energy vehicles have doubled from 10,000 yuan to 20,000 yuan, and subsidies for trade-ins of fuel vehicles have been raised from 7,000 yuan to 15,000 yuan. Second, the new policy applies to all subsidy applications. The new subsidy standards apply to all eligible automobile scrapping allowance applications, while the shortfall between new subsidies and previous ones will also be made up. Third, the process has been streamlined. Together with relevant departments, we have been optimizing the process of subsidy application review and fund issuance, enabling consumers to get the subsidies as soon as possible. At the same time, we will also guide localities to make good and full use of central support funds, formulate policies appropriately for automobile trade-in allowances, and continue to deliver the automobile trade-in policy. Thank you.

The Cover: Recently, To Lam, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee and Vietnamese president paid a state visit to China. Could you brief us on China-Vietnam economic and trade cooperation? Going forward, how will you better upgrade it?

He Yadong: In recent years, China-Vietnam bilateral trade has grown rapidly, and significant progress has been made in investment cooperation. In terms of bilateral trade, China is the biggest trading partner of the Vietnam, with the bilateral trade exceeding USD 200 billion for three years in a row, and reaching USD 145.07 billion from January to July this year, a year-on-year increase of 20.9%. China is also Vietnam's largest export market for agricultural products, with Vietnamese products such as durian and dragon fruit being popular among Chinese consumers. China's imports of agricultural products from Vietnam account for about one-fifth of its total agricultural imports from ASEAN members. In terms of investment cooperation, Vietnam is China’s important overseas investment destination, and the foreign direct investment from China to Vietnam amounted to USD 1.84 billion from January to July this year, keeping a relatively rapid growth. China-built Hanoi Metro Line 2 has been providing convenient travel experience for local citizens. Chinese companies invested in a batch of PV and wind power projects, which are good examples of the green economic cooperation between the two sides.

Moving forward, MOFCOM will earnestly implement the important consensus reached by the highest leaders of our two parties and countries, and seize the opportunity of next year, which will mark the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries, to promote the improvement and upgrading of the bilateral economic and trade cooperation.

First, bilateral trade cooperation will be strengthened. Businesses of both sides will be supported to fully leverage platforms such as the CIIE, Canton Fair and the China-ASEAN Expo to increase trade in high quality agricultural products and industrial finished products.

Second, new driving forces for investment cooperation will be explored. We will promote mutually beneficial cooperation in areas such as the digital economy and green development.

Third, supply chain cooperation will be deepened. Both countries will enhance industrial park and sub-national cooperation to jointly promote unimpeded trade and coordinated development of industries.

Fourth, regional economic integration will be further promoted. China-ASEAN FTA 3.0 negotiations will speed up and dividend of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will be continuously unleashed, making greater contribution to the regional development and prosperity. Thank you.

Economic Daily: Total retail sales of consumer goods in July increased by 2.7% year on year, and the pace of development in the Chinese market was accelerated. What is MOFCOM’s take on current consumption data and future trend?

He Yadong: Since the beginning of this year, the consumer market has been growing steadily overall. Traditional consumption has been increasing steadily. New forms of consumption have been growing rapidly. Services consumption have been improved and become more accessible. A solid foundation has been provided for the recovery and growth of the economy. There are several features of the consumer market:

First, a stable growth momentum. Total retail sales of consumer goods in July was RMB3.78 trillion, a 2.7% year-on-year increase, 0.7 percentage point faster than in June. Retail sales of goods grew by 2.7% year on year, 1.2 percentage point faster than in June. Among the main categories of goods, more than 60% witnessed a faster growth than in June.

Second, more highlights in consumption. The digital consumption, green consumption, and health consumption all thrived, with sales in new energy vehicle (NEV), smart home and domestic products with Chinese elements soaring. From January to July, online retail sales of physical goods went up by 8.7%, accounting for 25.6% of the total retail sales of consumer goods. In July, retail sales of NEV increased by 36.9% year on year, and its penetration rate reached 51.1%. Retail sales of sports and entertainment products and communication equipment for entities above designated size grew by 10.7% and 12.7% respectively.

Third, more dynamics in the market. As summer comes, consumption in services industries such as tourism and cultural and entertainment keeps thriving. From January to July, retail sales of services increased by 7.2% year on year, 4.1 percentage point faster than those of goods. Revenue of catering industry grew by 7.1%, and retail sales of transportation services and communication services kept a double-digit growth rate.

In general, with faster implementation of policies and measures such as beefing up the renewal of consumer goods and promoting the high quality development of services consumption and widespread promotions carried out in different forms, it is expected that the consumer market will continue to recover and grow. Thank you.

CNBC : Recently, the Ministry of Commerce issued an announcement on imposing export controls on antimony and other items, which has caused concern in the industry. Could you tell us the reason for the export control on antimony? Will tungsten also be subject to export controls?

He Yadong: On August 15, the Ministry of Commerce and the General Administration of Customs jointly issued a notice to impose export controls on items related to antimony and superhard materials, starting from September 15. Items related to antimony and superhard materials are clearly dual-use items. According to international practices and to meet its own needs, China imposes export control on related items to safeguard national security and fulfill international non-proliferation obligation. These policies do not intend to pick on any specific country or region. Exports that meet relevant requirements will be approved.

Going forward, we will continue to advance export control work in accordance with laws and regulations. Thank you.

Reuters: Is China's latest decision to open an anti-subsidy investigation into imports of dairy products from the European Union in retaliation for the European Commission's move to reduce, not abandon, tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles?

He Yadong: First of all, I want to make clear that this case was initiated at the request of China's domestic industry, which is fundamentally different from the EU’s ex officio investigation into China's electric vehicles without petitions from member states or industries.

According to Chinese laws and regulations and WTO rules, domestic industries are entitled to filing trade remedy applications to maintain normal market order and defend their legitimate rights. After receiving the application, the Ministry of Commerce conducted pre-filing consultations with the EU on the matter of subsidies in accordance with legal procedures, and reviewed the materials and evidence submitted by the applicant. The Ministry of Commerce held that the domestic industry's application met the conditions for filing an anti-subsidy investigation and thus decided to launch an investigation.

I want to stress that the investigation has just been launched. We will conduct the investigation in an open and transparent manner in accordance with Chinese laws and regulations and WTO rules, and fully protect the rights of all stakeholders. Thank you.