Hainan approves fourteenth five-year development plan

 The Hainan authorities approved the fourteenth five-year plan for the socio-economic development of the region for 2021-2025, TASS correspondent reported citing the propaganda department of the provincial party committee.

 

According to statement, the Hainan administration has also set goals for the period until 2035. It is assumed that in 10 years both the economic and innovation potential of the island will maximize, and it will become one of the most attractive places for foreign investors. In accordance with the tasks set by the authorities, Hainan is going to zero duties on many goods and reduce trade barriers for a wide range of imported products during this period of time.

 

According to the information obtained by TASS, by 2025 the provincial leadership intends to "lay the foundations of a system-forming mechanism for the implementation of the development strategy of Hainan's free trade port."

 

The key principles of cooperation with foreign partners in the trade and economic sphere, as noted, will include the simplification of procedures and the gradual abolition of customs duties. In addition, the island's investment and business climate "should generally reach its highest level" over the next few years. In response to domestic and international risks, "effective countermeasures will be taken that will allow timely elimination of the impact of negative factors."

 

During the new five-year plan, the Hainan government is going to place particular emphasis on the development of the modern financial services sector, which allows creating many new jobs. At the same time, the authorities are improving mechanisms to simplify the activities of domestic and foreign qualified investors with limited liability. These special regimes enable companies to overcome a range of barriers to cross-border investment.

 

Hainan's achievements during the thirteenth five-year plan

According to official data, during the thirteenth socio-economic development plan (2016-2020), the annual growth rate of the province's gross regional product averaged over 10%. Hainan has become one of the key Chinese administrative regions with high per capita income. Tourism, the modern service sector and advanced technology industries have played a particularly important role in improving the welfare of the local residents.

 

The authorities also said that over the past five years they have successfully completed the initial stage of modernizing Hainan's economy. As a result, the number of competitive market players, contributing to the growth of innovations, has sharply increased. As noted in the released statement, "the basis for the development of an international consumer zone of global importance on the island has been formed."

 

According to preliminary estimates of the region's statistical office, the average per capita income of the urban population of Hainan in 2020 will reach 27,600 yuan (over $ 4,200 at the current exchange rate). This is 45% higher than in 2015.

 

Hainan's Sanya awarded prize for developing yachting industry

 Hainan's Sanya received an award for the development of the yachting industry, reported the Hainan Daily newspaper.

 

According to the news outlet, the selection and awarding of the winners took place at the Seventh Conference on the Development of the Yachting Industry, which was held on December 11 in the Chinese city of Zhuhai (Guangdong Province, South China). Sanya won the City of the Year for Yacht Industry Development award. According to the newspaper, the Chinese cities of Shenzhen (Guangdong province, southern China) and Xiamen (eastern Fujian province) also claimed the victory in the nomination.

 

In addition to the award ceremony, a thematic symposium was held on the sidelines of the conference, where experts discussed issues of industry development, promotion of yacht tourism, as well as opportunities for cooperation between cities that are centers of industry development.

 

According to official figures, there are 850 yacht berths in the port of Sanya, as well as about 100 companies that rent pleasure boats. In 2019, their owners and tenants made about 100,000 exits to the sea, organizing voyages for more than 780,000 people.

According to the Hainan Daily, this year, despite the pandemic, the industry has been actively developing. From January to November 2020, more than 80,000 sea voyages were made, more than 550,000 people went for a trip.

 

Hainan authorities vow to search for new opportunities to develop free trade port

 Shen Xiaoming, Hainan's Party Secretary, ordered to look for new opportunities to boost the development of the regional free trade port, announced the administration of the island on Wednesday.

 

"It is necessary to liberate thinking, boldly experiment, be ready for innovation. In order to create Hainan's free trade port, we have to get rid of the old way of thinking." the head of the island's administration emphasized. According to him, a new breakthrough may occur in the near future thanks to the coordinated efforts of government structures at all levels, taking into account the innovative ideas of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

 

The provincial leader recalled that the progress in development Hainan has managed to achieve over the past 30 years has become possible primarily due to modernization and new thinking. "Only this" magic weapon "can pave the way for us to build a free port with Chinese features," said Shen Xiaoming.

 

The secretary of the party committee specified that the future success of the southernmost Chinese province also depends on "the ability to see the true essence of things, learn from successful examples, and study the experience of both China and other countries." "We must resolutely avoid those innovations that cannot bring us any practical benefit, or will have a limited positive effect on socio-economic development," the official said.

In April 2018, President Xi Jinping said that the Chinese authorities intend to actively involve Hainan in globalization and to draw foreign investors to the island province. By 2050, according to the authorities, the island should become a unique international cluster with an advanced economy, developed tourism, top-notch scientific, technical and financial potential, and modern medicine. The branches of the best universities and offices of the most powerful corporations in the world will be located on the Island of Hainan.

Hainan policies brighten duty-free group's prospects

 Implementation of new favorable policies in Hainan province has boosted sales and profits of China Duty Free Group, the country's largest operator of duty-free stores.

 

Financially stronger now, CDFG plans to open a new duty-free shopping mall in Haikou, capital of Hainan, in the next few years.

The planned mall will offer comprehensive range of merchandise, it said. Currently, it has four duty-free stores in Sanya, Haikou and Boao in the province.

 

"The development potential of Hainan is beyond imagination. We are highly confident in the booming growth of China's travel retail market, and we hope to introduce more brands and limited-edition products in China with cheaper prices, and further satisfy the demand of Chinese consumers," said Charles Chen, president of China Duty Free Group.

 

With more international brands and products available and more discounted prices offered in Hainan duty-free shopping, Chinese consumers have shown their enthusiasm for shopping.

 

"Hainan has become one of the most popular travel destinations," said Liu Bin, general manager of CDFG(Sanya) Downtown Duty Free Store Co Ltd, a local arm of the parent company.

 

CDFG said its business model envisages sales driven by professional buyers of the company who will fly to Europe, the United States and other places to select products at annual order-placing meetings.

 

Starting July 1, Hainan increased its annual tax-free shopping quota from 30,000 yuan ($4,570) to 100,000 yuan per person. The range of duty-free goods has also expanded from 38 categories to 45, while the previous tax-free limit of 8,000 yuan for a single product has been lifted.

 

From July 1 to Oct 31, official data showed that Hainan's four duty-free shops saw sales revenues hit 12 billion yuan, surging 214 percent on a yearly basis.

 

The four stores together received 1.78 million customers and sold some 12.87 million units of duty-free merchandise, up 58.8 percent and 139.7 percent year-on-year, respectively, according to Haikou Customs.

 

Cosmetics, perfumes and jewelry top the category list of sales at Hainan duty-free stores in terms of the number of items sold.

 

Duty-free shopping has become an important driver to promote the growth of tourism industry in Hainan, and it has continuously injected new vitality into the domestic tourism industry, CDFG said.

 

In the duty-free shopping mall in Sanya, it is common to see customers lining up at the door of luxury stores like Gucci, Cartier and Tiffany.

 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and travel restrictions, many people can't travel abroad. In Hainan, it's more convenient for Chinese consumers to buy different kinds of latest products, benefiting from the new offshore duty-free policies introduced in Hainan, CDFG said.

 

With more than 30 years of growth in the duty-free market, CDFG has been improving its ability in purchasing, operations, marketing and digitalization. The company has established long-term cooperation with about 1,000 renowned brands, it said.

 

With more industry players joining the duty-free retail market, CDFG said the sector would grow bigger and become more competitive. Relying on the powerful tourism resources of its parent company, China Tourism Group, CDFG hopes to build the core competence in the tourism retail market globally and become a force to reckon with in the sector.

 

This year, CDFG is expected to top a list of global tourism retailers in terms of sales revenues, according to the Moodie Davitt Report, published by London-based Moodie International Ltd, a business-to-business publisher and information provider.

 

In the first half of this year, CDFG achieved sales revenue of 19.3 billion yuan. It was much higher than that of Swiss duty-free retailer Dufry and South Korea-based Lotte Duty Free, which were listed as the No 1 and No 2 players last year. In 2019, sales of CDFG were ranked fourth among duty-free operators globally.

 

CDFG said duty-free shopping in Hainan is becoming an effective tool to guide consumption flow back to China, as a large number of regular duty-free shoppers were those who used to shop abroad during their travels.

 

But because of COVID-19-related restrictions on travel, shopping abroad have found the going tough this year.

 

The Hainan shopping uptrend came against the backdrop of the nation's newly proposed dual-circulation development pattern, which sees China mainly relying on "internal circulation" for its long-term development, while placing equal emphasis on both the domestic and external markets as engines of economic growth.

Draft law aims to make Hainan FTP a showpiece of free trade

 China is expanding its efforts to develop the southern Hainan island into a globally significant free trade port by creating an enabling business climate and facilitating investment.

 

A draft law of the Hainan free trade port was submitted to a bimonthly session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, for review on Tuesday.

 

The central government had released a master plan in June that outlined a series of measures for the construction of the Hainan free trade port. The new draft law, when passed, will convert the policy incentives into laws. Prominent among these include bills on Customs clearance, tax incentives, capital account opening and improved market access for several industries. Priority will also be given to sectors dealing with the real economy, especially businesses related to tourism, modern services and high-tech in particular, according to the draft.

 

Zhang Yansheng, chief researcher at the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, said relevant laws are necessary to achieve the goals laid out in the master plan, which will help transform the island into a high-level free trade port with strong international influence. "International free trade ports such as Hong Kong and Singapore started their FTP operations with legislation and it helped create a world-class business environment and boost their rapid development. The Hainan free trade law is in line with China's aim of promoting the development of rule of law and the modernization of the country's governance system, while seeking to provide a legal framework for the construction of a high-quality free trade port in Hainan," Zhang said.

 

According to the draft, new steps will be taken for promoting cross-border trade settlements. Financial institutions in the FTP will be allowed to run offshore financial services after necessary approvals. The draft also requires financial institutions in the FTP to serve the real economy as a basic requirement.

 

Economic activities will be carried out in accordance with the high-standard international economic and trade rules, the draft said. Efforts will also be aimed at making the Hainan FTP a place with world-class business facilities, and it will be governed by a sound legal framework. The island will also allow greater tax breaks for investors by introducing a clearer, more simplified tax structure.

 

A list-based management approach will be introduced for goods exported and imported through the Hainan FTP, with goods outside the list passing through the port without any hindrance. Greater efforts for environment protection will also be put in place, said the draft law.

 

In addition, the Hainan provincial government will have its own mandate to undertake necessary reforms.

 

Cui Weijie, director of the Institute of Industry Development and Strategy under the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, said future implementation of the law will ensure that follow-up policies and measures are implemented quickly so as to help advance the construction of a high-quality free trade port.

 

According to Cui, the Hainan FTP will play an important role in implementing the comprehensive deepening of reforms and testing the high level of openness policies. He said the construction of the free trade port will foster high-quality economic development and fuel economic growth in the economies associated with the Belt and Road Initiative.

 

Li Guanghui, chief expert of the China free trade zone strategic research institute at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, said the Hainan FTP is of vital importance for pursuing an open economy.

 

"Unlike free trade zones, free trade ports reflect the world's highest level of openness," Li said. "We need to build a legal system to lead the way for building a high-quality free trade zone in Hainan, which will inject new impetus to build an open economy in the nation and play a key role in building the new 'dual-circulation' development pattern that takes the domestic market as the mainstay while domestic and foreign markets complement each other."

 

The Hainan FTP will help boost international economic circulation and spur stable economic development despite the negative impact of COVID-19 on trade and investment, said Li.

 

According to the National Development and Reform Commission, Hainan's new duty-free policy, which took effect on July 1, has driven the purchase of 15.9 billion yuan ($243 billion) worth of duty-free items during the July-November period, with a 204 percent year-on-year increase.

 

A letter to international talents in Hainan

 Dear Sir or Madam,

Greetings！

We are enjoying a fresh start for the year ahead. On the occasion of the New Year, I would like to extend my holiday wishes and cordial greetings to you and your family and thank you for your contribution to the development of the Hainan Free Trade Port.

The development of a free trade port in Hainan is a major national strategy personally planned, arranged, and promoted by President Xi Jinping. It is a major event in China’s reform and opening-up process in the new era. On November 4, 2020, President Xi Jinping delivered a keynote speech at the Third China International Import Expo, mentioning the Hainan Free Trade Port twice, clearly affirming that the Hainan Free Trade Port's development has achieved a smooth start.

A great undertaking requires capable people to succeed; a great cause requires capable people to flourish. The key to the development of the Hainan Free Trade Port lies in talented individuals such as yourself. Hainan attaches great importance to introducing talent, is vigorously implementing the One Million Talent Recruitment Action Plan of Hainan Province, and offers an active, open, and effective talent policy.

On September 21, 2020, the Implementation Plan on the Pilot Work of the International Talent Service Management Reform of the Hainan Free Trade Port was issued, which focused on liberalizing and facilitating the entry, exit, employment, and work of international personnel. Meanwhile, it provides a full range of support and protection on the provincial level for international talents to innovate and start up businesses in Hainan and strives to create a livable and workable environment to develop international talents.

To get a full picture of the current situation of international talents in the province, accurately match the job demand, and guarantee Hainan’s service level, we are carrying out a survey of talents from other countries and regions including Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, and of the overseas-educated talents in Hainan.Please take time to fill in the survey and help us to serve you better in the future.

We wish you a happy new year, good health, and all the best.

The Talent Development Bureau of the Hainan Provincial Committee of the CPC

December 31, 2020

New IP court in Hainan starts accepting cases

 A new intellectual property (IP) court based on South China's Hainan Island opened for operations on Monday, according to local authorities.

 

Named after the Hainan free-trade port, the new court covers IP-related civil, administrative and criminal cases in the province, such as those related to patents, technical secrets, computer software, new plant varieties and layout-designs of integrated circuits.

The scope of its jurisdiction is different from that of the current IP courts in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, which only hear civil and administrative cases.

A draft decision to establish the court was submitted last month to a session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

The court is expected to improve the overall judicial protection mechanism of intellectual property rights and further explore judicial reforms, according to the draft decision.