Shenzhen initiates new round of economic reforms

On June 10, the Central Committee and State Council released high-level guidelines to further economic reform in the tech hub of Shenzhen.

Quick background: Shenzhen has served as the frontier of reform since it was established as China’s first Special Economic Zone in 1980.

• In 2020, Beijing issued a five-year implementation plan to test out further economic reforms in Shenzhen.

The new guidelines build on the 2020 plan, outlining new reform priorities that align with Beijing's strategic goals, including:

• Promoting the real economy via finance and data sharing reform
• Further opening up cross-border services
• Giving companies greater autonomy in overseas hiring and “foreign affairs management”
• Promoting new policies in education and talent training

ICYDK: Developing sci-tech talent was identified as a top policy priority at the October 2022 20th Party Congress and July 2024 Third Plenum.

What to watch: Shortly after the 2020 reform vision was announced, the macro planner (NDRC) announced 40 specific pilot reform measures.

• We expect a similar list to be released this time around.