Beijing – China launched a revised new negative list of foreign investment market access on Sunday, introducing more openness, allowing foreign investors to hold majority stakes or sole proprietorships in more industries.
Approved by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Commerce issued two negative lists for 2019.
These two lists, one for the Pilot Free Trade Area (FTZ) and one for the rest of the country, contain fewer access restrictions. Now, there are 37 foreign investors listed in the pilot free trade zone, less than 45, and the non-free trade zone needs to implement 40 projects instead of 48.
The new negative list of market access outlines the investor’s industry, sector and corporate exclusion zone. Industries, sectors and companies that are not on the list are open to investors in all market segments. The Chinese authorities revise the negative list of market access every year. The 2018 version was released in December last year.
The service industry will achieve greater openness in transportation, infrastructure, culture and value-added telecommunications.
The restrictions that domestic shipping agencies must be controlled by the Chinese have been cancelled. The restrictions on urban gas and heat pipes controlled by China with a population of more than 500,000 have been lifted. The restrictions that cinemas and performance agencies must be controlled by the Chinese have been cancelled. At present, foreign investment restrictions on domestic multiparty communications, store-and-forward and call center services have been removed.
Market access to agriculture, mining and manufacturing has been alleviated.
Foreign investment is prohibited from developing wildlife resources. The restrictions on oil and gas exploration and development are limited to the cancellation of Sino-foreign joint ventures or non-equity joint ventures, as well as the prohibition of foreign investment in the exploration and exploitation of molybdenum, tin, antimony and fluorite.
In the manufacturing industry, the prohibition of foreign investment in the production of rice paper and ink tablets has been cancelled.
On the basis of nationwide open measures, the 2019 Free Trade Zone Pilot Foreign Investment Negative List has removed restrictions on foreign investment in areas such as fishery fishing and publishing.
