U.K. media reports blame China for the nation's steel industry woes. (Photo : www.scmp.com)
The Chinese government has issued on March 13, Friday, the revised guidelines for foreign direct investment (FDI) that include lifting some restrictions on foreign capital, according to a report on livetradingnews.com.
The National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Commerce issued the new catalogue, which provided not only guidance to foreign investment, but also information on open areas for investment to foreign firms with lower threshold, especially in the manufacturing and services sectors.
The new catalogue is set for implementation on April 10, the government said.
The catalogue, now in its sixth edition, has three components and identifies industries where foreign investment is restricted, banned and encouraged.
The report said tgat the latest revision has slashed the number of restricted companies to more than half, from 79 to 38. Industries where local investors hold stakes were also reduced from 43 to 15, while industries that require Chinese investors to control stakes were likewise cut down from 44 to 35.
Compared to the old guidance catalogue where foreign investors are previously barred from 38 industries, they are now barred in only 36 industries.
"Foreign investment brings not only money, but technology and management expertise, crucial to industrial upgrading," Wang Yiming, former secretary-general of the NDRC, was quoted as saying.
Zhao Jinping, an official of the State Council development research center, said that some local and domestic companies can compete with foreign firms. He said that this will also help strengthen Chinese companies and allow them to adjust with competitors.
Opening the country to investors is part of the government's thrust to spur new growth amid sluggish economic expansion, environmental issues and rising domestic labor costs.
In his annual report last week, Premier Li Keqiang declared that China will take steps to enhance foreign investment and create a "stable, fair, transparent and predictable" environment for businesses to thrive in the country.
Last year, China led the world in terms of FDI, which reached $120 billion as new foreign-funded companies also rose by 5.76 percent, or equivalent to 38,400 companies.
