China will reduce or cancel tariffs on certain imported goods and
materials starting in 2021 in a bid to expand imports, boost the
domestic market and support the formation of high-standard free trade
areas under the country's new "dual-circulation" development paradigm,
according to the Ministry of Finance. The new interim tariff rates on imports, which will be lower than
Most Favored Nation tariff rates, will apply to 883 kinds of goods as of
Jan 1, including foods, medicines and information technology products,
the Office of the Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council, which
is based in the ministry, announced on Wednesday. MFN rates are what nations promise to use with other members of the
World Trade Organization, unless there is a preferential trade
agreement. Import duties will be eliminated on some raw materials for medicines
for cancer, and on some special formula foods for sick children. The
changes are meant to lower prices and ease the burden on patients'
families, according to a statement posted on the website of the Ministry
of Finance. Starting on July 1, China will make the sixth reduction on MFN tariff
rates on 176 kinds of information technology products, and interim
tariffs on nine imported products will be canceled, according to the
Office of the Customs Tariff Commission. These measures are in line with Chinese policymakers' expectations of
further lowering import tariffs and increasing imports of high-quality
goods and services, experts said, which can also promote the integration
of the regional economy. An official told China Daily the commission would "follow the
requirements of an executive meeting of the State Council on the
effective implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic
Partnership signed earlier this year". It also "will work closely with
relevant departments under the mechanism of the Customs Tariff
Commission of the State Council to promote the preparation for the
implementation of tariff reduction". China will further reduce agreement tariff rates applied on some
import goods originating in several countries and regions, including New
Zealand, Peru and South Korea, in accordance with China's free trade
agreements. The agreement rates under the Asia Pacific Trade Agreement
will be applied to some import goods originating in Mongolia starting
Jan 1. On the same date, the bilateral free trade agreement between
China and Mauritius will also take effect, according to the Ministry of
Finance. Huang Peng, president of Shanghai WTO Affairs Consultation Center,
said that the adjustments of agreement tariff rates will facilitate the
formation of high-standard free trade areas and improve the efficiency
of resource allocation globally, which will support China's new
"dual-circulation" development paradigm, in which the domestic market is
the mainstay and the domestic and foreign markets complement each
other. Although some developed countries choose the anti-globalization and
exclusive governance model, China will keep opening and improving
relationships with trade partners, which can improve the resilience of
regional value and supply chains and accelerate global economic recovery
amid the pandemic, said Huang. Also, according to published schedules, the import tariff rates of some aircraft equipment will be reduced in 2021. Tu Xinquan, a professor and dean of the China Institute for WTO
Studies at the University of International Business and Economics, said
the measure will reduce the production costs of Chinese manufacturers
and promote the development of new types of infrastructure construction
and high-technology products. The tariff adjustment is meant to meet the growing demand in the
domestic market, in accordance with the economic and social development
goals in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) and for the longer term until
2035, especially to strengthen the global competitive capacity of
China's manufacturing industry, said Tu. Lowering import tariffs will encourage domestic production, such as
in aeronautical manufacturing, and mitigate the impact of the COVID-19
pandemic, Tu added.
|