|
Expert says move accords with nation's commitment to opening-up on all fronts China's newly enacted rules on foreign investment security reviews
are to safeguard national security and won't put an unnecessary burden
on normal foreign businesses, the Ministry of Commerce said on Thursday. "Carrying out security reviews on foreign investments that affect or
may affect national security is a regular international practice. Major
economies have already set up or are improving such security review
mechanisms," said Gao Feng, spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce. The country's new rules, which took effect in January, concentrate on
security reviews of foreign investment in military and other areas
concerning national defense and security, as well as major agricultural,
energy and resources areas that are critical to national security. The new rules are in line with the requirement of the Foreign
Investment Law, and provide a necessary guarantee for the stable and
sound development of the Chinese economy, he said, adding that they are
also conducive to the growth of foreign companies in China in the long
run. It is not a protectionist move or a refusal to further open up.
Instead, it accords with the nation's commitment to opening-up on all
fronts and aims at reinforcing the security mechanism for opening-up,
said Hao Hongmei, deputy director of the foreign investment institute at
the Beijing-based Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic
Cooperation. While encouraging and protecting foreign investment, the rules should
prevent and tackle national security risks at a higher level, she said,
noting that opening-up without security safeguards is unsustainable in
the long run. Gao, from the Commerce Ministry, said the government will continue to
strengthen services for key foreign-funded enterprises and projects,
and help accelerate the infrastructure construction of foreign-funded
projects this year. In the meantime, Gao said the country will also expand the level of
protection for foreign companies' legal interests and implement working
measures on complaints by foreign-invested companies, while continuously
updating China's Foreign Investment Guide to build a transparent and
convenient investment environment. Despite the challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic and the
global economic recession, China's actual use of foreign direct
investment surged 31.5 percent year-on-year to 176.76 billion yuan
($26.07 billion) in the first two months of this year, according to the
ministry. Nathan Stoner, vice-president of Cummins Inc, a United States-based
engine manufacturer, said that the company's research and development
facility, involving a total investment of $250 million, will become
operational in Wuhan, Hubei province, by the end of this year. Policies introduced "China has continuously introduced new policies to optimize its
business environment and the Chinese market has already become a
powerful driver of the company's global performance," said Stoner. The US company sold more than 670,000 engines in China last year, an
increase of 24 percent year-on-year, and the company's highest growth
since it entered the Chinese market in 1975. With the Ministry of Commerce announcing in November that it will
develop its first dedicated five-year plan on the utilization of foreign
investment for China's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period, the
government will provide more support for specific projects invested by
global firms, such as fast-track approval and subsidies for land and
energy costs, according to a study released by international advisory
company Brunswick Group.
| 
Related News
