China to Introduce New Policy Incentives for Investment in Western RegionsChina is expected to introduce a package of new policy incentives to attract more overseas funds into the country's central and western regions, a State Development Planning official said Thursday.Zhang Xiaoqiang, director of the Department of Foreign Capital Utilization of the State Development Planning Commission (SDPC), said at a press conference today that to facilitate the implementation of developing China's western regions, the country will open more areas to foreign investment, ease restrictions on stock-holding for foreign investors, and make substantial progress in utilizing foreign capital through new means other than establishing overseas-funded ventures. Zhang said that the retail business in all capital cities in central and western regions will soon be opened to overseas investment, and the telecommunications and insurance markets in these regions will also be gradually opened to overseas investors. Other than the traditional means of establishing overseas- funded enterprises, new means will also be adopted to facilitate the inflow of foreign capital such as BOT, project financing, transfer of operational rights of projects, and raising fund from capital markets. Overseas-funded ventures in central and western regions may enjoy eased restrictions on the sale of their products if they are in huge demand on the domestic market. Zhang added the central government will direct more preferential loans from foreign governments and international organizations to the central and western regions, increasing the amount for these regions from 60 percent to 70 percent of total loans. The official revealed that China will soon announce a list defining major industries in the central and western regions so as to better guide overseas investment in these regions. |
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