China's improving business environment conducive to international business activities

Editor's note: Moulik Jahan, a special commentator on current affairs for CGTN, is a strategic and security affairs analyst. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

China's internationally integrated, open, market-oriented, and law-based business environment is essential for generating economic progress. One of the main goals of China's 45-year reform and opening-up has been to improve the business climate. During a State Council study session on December 20, Premier Li Qiang stressed the need of enhancing China's business environment to preserve market vitality and strengthen the endogenous dynamics for growth. Premier Li accurately portrayed the situation in which foreign investment and economic development are contingent upon a favorable business climate. For high-quality development, Premier Li underlined the need of establishing a corporate climate that is internationalized, law-based, and focused on the market. He demanded that administrative penalties be standardized, that regulations be made more effective, that government services be conducted in accordance with international law, and that new technology be used.

With the goal of strengthening China's opening-up policies and improving the business climate, these measures are in line with the highest standards of international economic and trade regulations. China is reaching a turning point in its economic recovery in 2024, and these policy recommendations will be carried out in full. Fair competition, safeguarding intellectual property rights, creating stable and dynamic markets, and facilitating market access would be the main goals of the policies.

China has a business climate that is not only appropriately regulated but also flexible, open to innovation, and changes in order to sustain economic development in the future. It is able to adapt to the many ways that global business is developing. Since 2013, China has optimized the business environment via national reforms, greatly increasing its economic competitiveness. This has improved China's rating in the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business Project. China's business climate has improved as a result of better market regulatory services. In a 2020 World Bank study on ease of doing business, the country was ranked 31st out of 190 nations and regions. China is giving international businesses a fair business climate, facilitating easier commerce in commodities, and enhancing worker rights. Daniel Wussow, senior vice president of BASF Mobile Emissions Catalysts, commended China's economic changes, pointing to improved intellectual property protection, more openness, and advantages for international corporations in the business environment.

China is one of the greatest countries in the world to invest in despite the derogatory rhetoric perpetuated by the Western media. It has produced an atmosphere that many international investors would consider favorable for long-term, steady development. With a population of around 1.4 billion, China has a huge domestic market and plenty of room to boost its domestic consumption. Strong macroeconomic performance in China is a factor in the country's GDP growth. The industrial and agricultural industries are likewise doing well.

China's prosperity is also attributed to its high-quality free trade zones (FTZs), high standard of living, innovative training programs, excellent education, and use of cutting-edge technology. Other factors include China's green finance, better communication networks, port operations, and railway networks. A thriving private sector, liberal economic policies, economic reforms, and openness are some of the nation's advantages. Other essentials include market expansion, diversification of exports and markets, digitization of banking and payment gateways, utilities at FTZs, efficient logistics and supply chain management, and proactive development of the financial sector and capital markets.

For example, the city of Shanghai has been opening up its market to international businesses and enacting rules that are conducive to business. In Shenzhen, 10 major areas of improvement were highlighted in a paper published by the municipal government in July 2023 titled Key Points on Shenzhen's Work to Optimize the Business Environment in 2023. Beijing has also put out plans to enhance the business climate in 2023, which include opening up new markets in a number of service-related industries, streamlining the application process for foreign talent visas, etc.

China is modernizing its customs system significantly to increase efficiency and transparency in the clearing process. It has also adopted intellectual property rights protection in accordance with WTO standards.

Even if there are some challenges, these measures will make China a very attractive place to invest in, as well as an engine and stabilizer of global economy, as government policy is progressively shifting to improve the business climate.

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