Foreign trade value of China's pilot FTZs hits 4.7 trillion yuan in 2020

The total foreign trade value of China's 18 pilot free trade zones, established before September 2020, amounted to 4.7 trillion yuan ($728.03 billion) last year, representing 14.7 percent of the nation's total, data released by the Ministry of Commerce showed.

A total of 393,000 new companies were established in China's 18 pilot FTZs last year, while contributing 176.38 billion yuan of foreign direct investment in actual use, accounting for 17.6 percent of the foreign investment in China, according to the data provided by the ministry.

China will promote deep-level reforms in pilot free trade zones and facilitate innovations on the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment, said Tang Wenhong, director-general of the department of pilot free trade zones and free trade ports at the Ministry of Commerce.

The ministry is working on a negative list for cross-border service trade for Hainan free trade port, he added.

During the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020), 17 pilot FTZs were newly built, bringing the total number to 21 in the country, The items on the negative list for foreign investment access for pilot FTZs were cut from 122 to 30 in the past five years.