China’s Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP), which is scheduled for unveiling on Dec. 18, will ensure efficient flow of people, goods and capital, senior officials from China’s key economic departments said.
The officials stated this at an Economic Roundtable, an all-media talk show hosted by Xinhua News Agency, noting that the development underscored China’s wider push for high-standard opening up strategy.
According to them, as China’s largest special economic zone, Hainan also holds unique advantages, serving as a testing ground for reform and facilitating an island-wide independent customs operation.
Cai Ping, an official with the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), said the proposed unveiling of the island-wide independent customs operation would give Hainan greater latitude to pilot higher-standard opening-up measures.
He explained that the move was aimed at expanding opening up and accelerating development, adding that the central pillar of the policy framework was the enhanced zero-tariff policy.
“These initiatives will not only drive the island’s high-quality development, but also provide a testing ground for broader national reform and opening up.
“They will send a clear message to the world that China’s commitment to high-level openness is unwavering, and that its doors will continue to open wider,” he said.
He emphasised that Hainan’s opening up was not merely about lifting restrictions, but about systematically building an institutional framework to ensure the free and efficient flow of people, goods and capital.
Also speaking, Wu Jingfang, an official with the Ministry of Finance, said that businesses will enjoy broader zero-tariff incentives under the new dispensation.
He said the proportion of tariff lines with zero-tariff products in the FTP would increase from 21 per cent to 74 per cent, while the number of tariff-free items in Hainan will increase from about 1,900 to around 6,600.
According to him, imported products that undergo at least 30 per cent value-added processing can enter the mainland tariff-free, and certain goods currently banned or restricted nationwide will enjoy open policies.
“These measures will further reduce business costs, help attract upstream and downstream enterprises to Hainan, and promote the clustered development of industrial chains, according to Wu.
“With a zero-tariff system fundamentally in place after the independent customs operation, high-quality global resources can flow into Hainan with greater freedom and efficiency, as trade liberalisation and facilitation are defining features of a free trade port,” Wu said.
Immigration officers process border entry procedures for passengers of a cruise ship in Sanya, south China’s Hainan Province, Jan. 3, 2025. (Image: Xinhua)
The experts believe that the unveiling of an unprecedented, island-wide independent customs operation is a complex undertaking with no ready-made blueprint.
“It is a complex and systemic project that requires careful alignment in policy transition, risk management, and regulatory coordination.
“Looking ahead, the Hainan FTP will prioritize promoting the free and efficient flow of key production factors, including trade, investment, cross-border capital, personnel and logistics, alongside the secure and orderly movement of data.
“With the independent customs operations, Hainan FTP is poised to become a key gateway for China’s new era of opening up and innovation,” Cai added.
Wu, on the other hand, said the Ministry of Finance would continue to advance tax system reforms, and enhance the response to the evolving needs of the Hainan FTP and China’s wider push for opening up.
“Key priorities will include advancing preferential corporate and personal income tax policies to attract top talent and leading enterprises, as well as expanding the list of zero-tariff products.
“With its optimised business environment, Hainan has emerged as a premier foreign investment destination, ranking among China’s top performers,” he said.
Jiang Zijun from the Ministry of Commerce noted that a key focus of the FTP’s trade policies was the adoption of more favourable zero-tariff measures, alongside more relaxed trade management rules.
“The Ministry of Commerce will make more efforts to support Hainan in aligning with high-standard international economic and trade rules, enhancing institutional openness, and fostering new growth drivers through targeted measures,” Jiang said.
Guo Da, Executive Director, China Institute for Reform and Development, said the development would mark a strong signal of China’s commitment to deeper opening up and advancing economic globalisation.
It would be recalled that in April 2018, China announced plans to transform the island into a pilot free trade zone, with a long-term vision of developing a free trade port with Chinese characteristics.
A master plan released in 2020 aimed to make Hainan a globally influential hub for high-level openness by mid-century.
From 2020 to 2024, Hainan attracted more foreign investment than it did in the entire 32 years since becoming a province, while its goods trade grew at an average annual rate of over 30 per cent.
Credit:(NAN/Xinhua)(www.nannews.ng)
