China to Remove Restrictions on Foreign Investment Access in Manufacturing Sector
China's top economic planner announced on Sunday that the 2024 version of the negative list for foreign investment access will lift restrictions on foreign investment in the manufacturing sector.
TroibNews 
China's National Development and Reform Commission, in collaboration with the Ministry of Commerce, announced on Sunday that restrictions on foreign investment in the manufacturing sector will be removed. This development follows the release of the 2024 update to the negative list for foreign investment access, which becomes effective on November 1.
The revised negative list now contains 29 items, a reduction from the previous 31, and marks significant deregulation in the manufacturing sector by eliminating all related restrictions.
"The comprehensive lifting of restrictions on foreign investment access in the manufacturing sector is conducive to further guiding foreign investment towards advanced manufacturing and high-tech fields, continuously optimizing the investment structure, and accelerating the development of new quality productive forces," stated Meng Huating, the deputy head of the foreign investment department at the MOC.
Further insights from ministry officials indicate that China plans to continue enlarging the pool of industries that encourage foreign investments.
"Such adjustments will create more opportunities for the development of foreign capital in China," commented Zhang Wei, vice president of the Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation under the MOC.
China first implemented a negative list for foreign investment access in 2013, which has seen multiple modifications to streamline and reduce restrictions over the years. The focus has now shifted predominantly to the non-manufacturing sector where the list stands at 29 items, down from the original 93.
Statistics provided by Zhang reveal a substantial growth in foreign capital in China's high-tech industries, which now accounts for 37.4 percent of the total foreign capital, marking a 10 percent increase over the period from 2017 to 2023.
In support of the updated list, the NDRC, together with the MOC and other regional and departmental bodies, plans to ensure the implementation of this new system and the negative list for foreign investment to enable prompt adoption of these new protocols.
Olivia Brown for TROIB News
The revised negative list now contains 29 items, a reduction from the previous 31, and marks significant deregulation in the manufacturing sector by eliminating all related restrictions.
"The comprehensive lifting of restrictions on foreign investment access in the manufacturing sector is conducive to further guiding foreign investment towards advanced manufacturing and high-tech fields, continuously optimizing the investment structure, and accelerating the development of new quality productive forces," stated Meng Huating, the deputy head of the foreign investment department at the MOC.
Further insights from ministry officials indicate that China plans to continue enlarging the pool of industries that encourage foreign investments.
"Such adjustments will create more opportunities for the development of foreign capital in China," commented Zhang Wei, vice president of the Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation under the MOC.
China first implemented a negative list for foreign investment access in 2013, which has seen multiple modifications to streamline and reduce restrictions over the years. The focus has now shifted predominantly to the non-manufacturing sector where the list stands at 29 items, down from the original 93.
Statistics provided by Zhang reveal a substantial growth in foreign capital in China's high-tech industries, which now accounts for 37.4 percent of the total foreign capital, marking a 10 percent increase over the period from 2017 to 2023.
In support of the updated list, the NDRC, together with the MOC and other regional and departmental bodies, plans to ensure the implementation of this new system and the negative list for foreign investment to enable prompt adoption of these new protocols.
Olivia Brown for TROIB News
