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Businesses based in Shanghai's Pudong New District are to have easier access to the international market, thanks to a recent move by the municipal government to lower the benchmark for local businesses engaged in foreign trade.
According to the new policy, newly established businesses do not have to wait a year before being authorized to engage in foreign trade, and the minimum registered capital required for commercial and manufacturing businesses intending to import and export has been reduced to 1 million (120,000 U.S. dollars) and 500,000 yuan (60,000 U.S. dollars) respectively.
The move is in line with China's commitments to the World Trade Organization and will boost the city's foreign trade development and add further growth to the logistic sector, said Wang Qingjiang, an official in charge of foreign trade.
"It will help small and medium-sized businesses, including private businesses, familiarize themselves with rules governing international trade and other internationally accepted standards through fair competition in the global market," he said.
By the end of 2001 217 Pudong-based businesses had been authorized to become importers and exporters, which accounted for 40.9 percent of all newly authorized traders in the city last year. Shanghai's foreign trade volume consequently climbed to about 9 percent or 27.6 billion U.S. dollars in the year.
(People's Daily April 3, 2002)
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