China's sincerity in opening up is sufficient, and the world is looking forward to new opportunities (international discourse)

The Lujiazui Financial and Trade Zone in Shanghai has attracted numerous multinational corporations to gather. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Chen Fei

The State Council recently issued the "Opinions on Further Optimizing the Foreign Investment Environment and Increasing the Attraction of Foreign Investment", proposing 24 targeted and high-value policies and measures to stabilize foreign investment from six aspects, including improving the quality of foreign investment utilization and ensuring the national treatment of foreign-invested enterprises, which has attracted widespread attention from the international community.

Multiple foreign media outlets believe that these policy measures "provide convenience for foreign businesses in China in terms of details", "reflect the Chinese government's determination to maintain an open, stable, and sustainable investment environment", and "are conducive to promoting economic recovery"; There are also many foreign media criticizing fallacies such as "weak economic growth in China" and "decoupling and disconnection", believing that "China is an important participant in the world economy" and "we need China".

New measures to attract investment attract attention

Recently, multiple foreign media outlets have reported on new trends in attracting foreign investment in China.

Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao reported that the Opinion is another economic stimulus policy issued by the Chinese government after "20 measures to restore and expand consumption" and "28 measures to promote private economy". The report quotes analysts as pointing out that the Opinion addresses foreign concerns from both macro and micro perspectives, focusing on macro level measures such as safeguarding foreign national treatment and protecting intellectual property rights, as well as proposing some "down-to-earth" measures from the micro level. In terms of improving the level of investment and operation facilitation, whether it is to optimize the exit and entry policies of foreign businessmen or improve the convenience of foreigners' Internet payment, it is to facilitate the life of foreign businessmen in China in detail.

The German "China Platform" website has noticed that the Opinion urges relevant departments to better protect the rights and interests of foreign investors, including increasing administrative enforcement of intellectual property rights and providing more tax incentives for foreign-invested enterprises.

"Faced with challenges, China is doing its best." According to the Indian Cryptocurrency News Network, the "Opinions" have put forward up to 24 guiding opinions aimed at boosting and optimizing China's foreign investment environment, reflecting China's attitude towards promoting foreign investment.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the Opinion further expands the preferential investment areas for foreign investment, requires equal treatment and participation of Chinese and foreign enterprises in government procurement and other fields, emphasizes attracting foreign investment in key areas, and fully leverages the leading role of the comprehensive demonstration zone for opening up the service industry. According to the analysis of "Today's Currency" in South Korea, investment in cutting-edge industries will be a key focus for China to attract foreign investment in the future.

"The implementation of the 'Opinions' is of great help in boosting the confidence of foreign enterprises," commented the European Chamber of Commerce in China.

"Overall, against the backdrop of increasing global economic uncertainty, the Opinion demonstrates the Chinese government's determination to maintain an open, stable, and sustainable investment environment." The website of "Arab Economy" stated that the Chinese government's series of policy measures are expected to further enhance its attractiveness to foreign investment and inject vitality into economic growth.

Foreign companies increasing their investment in China

Prior to the issuance of this Opinion, multiple departments in China had taken numerous actions and statements in stabilizing foreign investment. For example, in January this year, the new version of the Catalogue of Industries Encouraging Foreign Investment was officially implemented, with 239 new entries, reaching a new high in previous years. The fields and industries encouraging foreign investment were further expanded; In June, the General Administration of Customs launched 16 new measures to optimize the business environment, further boosting confidence in foreign investment and development; In July, the Ministry of Commerce held a roundtable meeting for foreign-funded enterprises to expand channels for collecting issues and listening to suggestions, and to respond promptly to address the concerns of enterprises

China's continuous expansion of high-level opening-up has brought stable expectations to foreign enterprises. According to multiple foreign media reports, since the beginning of this year, executives from multinational companies such as Microsoft, Apple, Tesla, Pfizer, and Starbucks have come to China. Foreign companies such as Siemens, BMW, and Volkswagen have increased their investment in China, including establishing intelligent manufacturing bases, establishing research and development and digital systems, and signing long-term technology cooperation agreements with Chinese enterprises.

According to an article in the German Economic Weekly, about 84% of German companies active in China hope to stay in China; Approximately 73% of the respondents ruled out the possibility of relocating their production network out of China.

The Financial Times reported that last month, Saudi Aramco completed a 10% acquisition of a Chinese petrochemical company for $3.4 billion. "For us, China is an important market," said Amin Nasser, CEO of the company

The so-called "decoupling and chain breaking" or "risk reduction" theory cannot stop foreign companies from "voting with their feet". This fully demonstrates that open cooperation and sharing opportunities are the aspiration and trend of the people.

"We need China." The German magazine "Heathrow" recently published an article titled "Politicizing economic cooperation will bring more risks. Technological progress knows no borders, and demonizing China or other technology companies will have a counterproductive effect on Germany's digital progress. If someone holds a negative attitude towards innovation and technology cooperation between Germany and China, using "unfair competition" or "systemic competition" as an excuse to implement protectionist policies or take punitive actions, it will ultimately cause harm to Germany.

The website of Foreign Policy magazine in the United States recently published an article stating that China dominates in some important fields, including solar and wind power technologies. China's performance in the field of electric vehicles is also better than other countries in the world. "We have every reason to believe that China is an important participant in the world economy. Even if it is partially 'decoupled' from China, it will slow down innovation in the United States and other countries."

Optimistic about China's economic prospects

Behind the increase of foreign investment in China is the positive expectation of the international community for the high-quality development of the Chinese economy. As the website of Royal Bank of Canada Wealth Management recently stated, "The opportunities brought by China cannot be ignored.". China's total economic output accounts for over 18% of the global economy, and it has the largest middle-income group in the world, which is enough to attract the attention of multinational corporations.

The website of the German magazine Focus recently published an article refuting the argument that China's economy is being criticized. The article argues that a series of facts, such as the stable growth of the Chinese economy, the continuous enhancement of innovation capabilities, the increasing rise of domestic brands, sufficient foreign exchange reserves, and the possession of a large number of key raw materials, indicate that the "China Collapse Theory" is fundamentally untenable.

The website of the Japan Times recently published an article stating that China's construction of a new development pattern with domestic circulation as the main body and domestic and international dual circulation promoting each other will make the Chinese economy more resilient and less susceptible to external shocks.

"World economic growth is closely linked to China's economic development," according to a commentary article in Pakistan's Daily Times. As the world's second-largest economy, China's policy documents will become a hot topic of global media attention. According to the International Monetary Fund's forecast, China will contribute 34.9% to global economic growth in 2023, which is an impressive number. China will become the center and key factor of global economic growth.

People's Daily Overseas Edition