Zhu Calls for Deepening Reform, Wider Opening

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, March 05, 2003

Zhu Calls for Deepening Reform, Wider Opening

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Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji called for deepening economic restructuring and opening still wider to the outside world, in the Report on the Work of the Government he delivered at the opening of the First Session of the 10th National People's Congress Wednesday.

While adhering to and improving the basic economic system in which public ownership plays the dominant role and diverse forms of ownership develop by its side, China will unswervingly consolidate and develop the public sector of the economy, and unswervingly encourage, support and guide the development of the individual, private and other non-public sectors of the economy, according to the report.

The government should continue to push reforms turning state-owned enterprises into standard joint-stock companies and improve the mechanisms of supervision over them in accordance with the requirements of establishing a modern corporate system.

"We should actively support eligible large enterprises to become listed on overseas stock markets. We should establish large, internationally competitive companies or enterprise groups that have distinctive main lines of business and possess their own intellectual property rights and name brands," the report says.

The government should do a better job of reorganizing military-industrial and other enterprises in difficulties and help them out of their plight; carry forward the reform of the power, telecommunications and civil aviation industries; reform the state property management system from top to bottom in an orderly way; expand the area in which private capital has market access and create an environment of fair competition for all types of market players; support the development of small and medium-sized enterprises, especially technology and labor-intensive ones, regardless of their forms of ownership.

"We should steadily carry out reform of the financial system and continue reforms of the taxation, investment and financing systems. We should deepen reform of the system for income distribution and progressively rationalize it," says the report.

Rectifying and regulating the order of the market economy is a long-term and demanding task, but we must persevere, the premier noted.

The government should seek both temporary and permanent solutions to the problems, with emphasis on permanent solutions; continue to focus on special areas and key links and crack down severely on the making and selling of counterfeit and shoddy goods and other illegal and criminal activities; improve the formulation of institutions and laws, strictly enforce the law and gradually bring market management under a system of laws and standards; promptly investigate and prosecute major cases of sabotage against the order of the market economy.

The government should speed up the establishment of a social credibility system. "We should pay close attention to ensuring production safety and strengthen supervision and management to effectively protect people's lives and property. We should accelerate the establishment of a new order in the socialist market economy through reform and rectification. We should open upfurther by integrating our 'bringing in' and 'going global' strategies."

While continuing to do a good job during the grace period afterour entry into the WTO, China should conscientiously exercise our rights and fulfill our commitments. "We need stability in our policies and measures to promote exports," the report says.

"We should continue our market diversification strategy and expand trade in goods and services on the basis of fine quality. We should cultivate and support superior domestic brands and improve the international competitiveness of Chinese products. We should optimize our import mix and deepen the reform of the foreign trade system."

The government should continue to actively and effectively use foreign capital, emphasize bringing in advanced technologies, modern managerial expertise and specialists, and support multiple forms of cooperation between Chinese enterprises and transnational corporations.

Vigorous efforts should be made to improve our investment environment and standardize procedures for attracting investment. Whatever their forms of ownership, Chinese enterprises that have comparative advantages should be encouraged to operate internationally through joint ventures, wholly-owned ventures or joint operations in order to increase the export of domestically produced goods, particularly capital goods.

"We should work still harder to promote bilateral, multilateral and regional economic cooperation."

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