BEIJING: China's cabinet on Tuesday unveiled new steps to arrest a slowdown in foreign investment, including expanding market access and relaxing some rules.
Overseas firms have been sourer on Beijing since it abandoned its ultra-strict COVID curbs in late 2022, with concerns over the business environment, economic recovery and politics weighing.
In an action plan, the State Council, China's cabinet, said it will reduce the list of industries where activities by foreign investors are either restricted or prohibited, and carry out pilot projects in science and tech innovation to attract overseas firms.
China will also expand access for foreign financial institutions to the banking and insurance sector and increase the scope of their participation in the domestic bond market, according to the detailed plan published by the official Xinhua news agency.
"Foreign investment is an important force in participating in China's modernisation drive and promoting the common prosperity and development of China's economy and the world economy," the cabinet said in the published plan.
Foreign investment shrank 11.7 per cent in January from a year earlier to 112.71 billion yuan ($15.66 billion), according to latest Chinese data.
In 2023, foreign direct investment into China shank eight per cent year-on-year.
China aims to create a level playing field for foreign firms, lift curbs on overseas access in the manufacturing industry, and promote the expansion of areas such as telecommunications and healthcare, the cabinet said.
China will support qualified foreign firms to carry out bank card clearing businesses in accordance with the law, and further open up commercial pension insurance and health insurance to foreign players, it added.
($1 = 7.1990 Chinese yuan renminbi)
(Reporting by Albee Zhang and Kevin Yao, Editing by Louise Heavens and Lucy Marks)