Pioneering Pudong shows China's commitment to greater opening-up

In the archive of the Pudong New Area in Shanghai, there is a carved rosewood horse figure on display.

It was a gift from the local government in Pudong to Fuji Bank Shanghai Branch, the first foreign bank established in the area, when it opened in 1995. The horse figure symbolizes the pioneering nature of the event. At that time, fueled by the rise of Pudong, China sent a clear message to hesitant foreign investors that its reform and opening-up policies would remain unchanged and even be further advanced.

Many years later, China issued a guideline to support high-level reform and opening-up of the Pudong New Area and build it into a "pioneer area for socialist modernization." A new mission has once again fallen upon Pudong.

In addition to taking the lead in innovation and urban governance, Pudong continues to emphasize opening-up, or more precisely, a higher-level of opening-up at the system level, in its pioneering profile.

Compared with the previous opening-up at the factor level, the advanced opening-up puts greater emphasis on proactively developing systems that are compatible with prevailing international rules. For example, Pudong is expected to explore new tax policies which adapt to outward investment and offshore businesses. It will also work to develop offshore RMB trading, explore new ways to integrate foreign securities, banking and insurance industries into China's economic corridors, and gradually relax restrictions on the employment of foreign talent in certain professional sectors. Shanghai Pudong International Airport will work to expand its freedoms of the air with relevant countries and regions, further relaxing airspace restrictions.

Currently, China is readily considering joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). The deal has put forward strict requirements on environmental standards, labor standards, and the proportion of state-owned enterprises in the national economy. As a pioneer area, Pudong can also make efforts in these fields and create an open, fair and equal environment.

To make an analogy, Pudong is "a summit of the plateau" in China's reform and opening-up.

Thirty-one years ago, with the opening-up and development of Pudong, many multinationals arrived in the area, leading to further reform efforts by the government in terms of service concepts, administrative efficiency, and legal environment. This unleashed great potential for Shanghai and even China's economic growth. In 2013, the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone was established. Since then, it has been working to introduce foreign investment and explore the negative list management system, laying solid groundwork for Pudong's higher-level opening-up at the system level. It's fair to say that building Pudong into a pioneer area for socialist modernization is a move that has naturally come about.

Carrying out reform and opening-up, proactively promoting innovation, encouraging bold trials, and working step by step can be said to be both Pudong and China's development path and experience. Pudong, which will be built into a pioneer area of socialist modernization, will become a leading force in China's continued reform and opening-up and fuel China's "dual circulation" development pattern. It will also inject new impetus into global economic and trade exchanges featuring greater openness and fairness.