Premier Li at CIIE touts FTZ (for CPTPP)
The Shanghai Free Trade Zone (FTZ) will further liberalize trade and investment.
- That's per Premier Li Qiang, speaking at the China International Import Expo (CIIE) on Sunday.
Some context: Xi Jinping launched the CIIE in 2018 to promote more Chinese imports and counter criticism of China's huge trade surplus.
- It serves as a platform for officials to deliver important policy messages to an international audience.
Per Li, the central government will soon release a plan to reform rules within the Shanghai FTZ to "align with international, high-standard economic and trade rules."
- We suspect the reforms will bring the FTZ in line with the rules of the 11-country CPTPP free trade agreement.
ICYDK: Back in June, Vice Minister for Commerce Wang Shouwen said China was preparing to pilot regulatory changes to better align with CPTPP standards.
Get smart: At a local level, businesses in the Shanghai FTZ will benefit from improved trading and regulatory standards.
- This is yet another sign that Beijing is dead set on attracting more foreign investment.
Get smarter: This hardly means that China is on a glide path to joining the CPTPP.
- Several members, like Japan and Canada, have scratchy relations with China and will require the PRC to clear a very high bar for entry.
What we're looking out for: There are 20 other FTZs across China – if Beijing rolls out reforms at all of them, the impact on trade and the biz environment would be substantial.