President Xi Jinping’s important speech during the meeting with international business representatives has significantly boosted foreign investors’ confidence and charted the course for China’s efforts to utilize foreign investment in the new era. The Ministry of Commerce will thoroughly study and implement the spirit of President Xi’s speech, steadfastly advance high-standard opening-up, and continue to support foreign enterprises in investing and expanding their presence in China.

First, we will further expand opening-up. Guided by the principle that "opening-up measures should be implemented sooner rather than later and faster rather than slower," we will accelerate the rollout of pilot projects for foreign investment in cloud computing, biotechnology, wholly foreign-owned hospitals, and other sectors. We will leverage opening-up platforms such as pilot free trade zones and the national pilot program for expanding opening-up in the services sector to promote broader trials in telecommunications and healthcare, while steadily and prudently expanding voluntary opening in education and culture. We will push for revisions to shorten the negative list for market access and continue to eliminate hidden barriers beyond the negative list for foreign investment, ensuring that global businesses can not only gain market access but also enjoy the right to operate smoothly within China.

Second, we will uphold fair market competition. In line with the principle of “equal legal application and treatment”, we will ensure national treatment for foreign-funded enterprises. We will work with relevant government branches to guarantee that products manufactured by foreign enterprises in China are eligible for government procurement on an equal footing. We will support foreign enterprises’ equal participation in large-scale equipment upgrades and consumer goods trade-in programs, and encourage their active involvement in China’s standard-setting and revision processes.

Third, we will strengthen service support. Following the directive to “enhance communication with foreign businesses”, we will fully leverage our task force for key foreign investment projects and organize outreach activities under the “Service Support for Foreign Enterprises” initiative. We will continue to hold monthly roundtable meetings with foreign enterprises with a focus on their key concerns, and work to make these meetings more effective.

China remains a fertile ground for foreign investment. We are confident that with the implementation of these measures, foreign enterprises will achieve even greater success in China. Thank you.