China shanghai pilot free trade zone là gì

China’s first free-trade zone will allow access to Facebook, Twitter and other websites banned elsewhere in the country, a Hong Kong newspaper reported. Above, a sign under construction reads “China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone.”

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SAN FRANCISCO -- In what could be the toehold that Facebook has been looking for, the giant social network and other websites banned in China may be accessible in a free-trade zone that is being set up in Shanghai, according to a report in the South China Morning Post.

China’s first free-trade zone will allow the access in a rare exception to strict government control of the Internet, the Hong Kong newspaper reported.

The report, citing unnamed government sources, said authorities would also welcome bids from foreign telecommunications firms for licenses to offer Internet services in the trade zone, an area established in July that covers less than 20 miles.

China’s ruling Community Party censors the Internet, blocking access to websites. Facebook and Twitter were blocked by Beijing in 2009 after deadly riots in the western province of Xinjiang.

“Bosses at social media networks and major media companies whose websites are banned on the mainland have lobbied Beijing for years to lift these bans,” the report said.

Sterne Agee analyst Arvind Bhatia says Facebook is getting “a foot in the door” in China.

“While the lifting of the ban on Facebook in China is currently limited only to the Shanghai Free Trade Zone, it is an important first step,” he wrote in a research report.

If Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg wants to realize his mission of connecting all 7 billion people on the planet, he cannot afford to skip over the world’s most populous nation, home to 1.3 billion people.

“Over time, if the Chinese government were to open up access to a broader area in the future, companies such as Facebook would be better positioned,” Bhatia wrote.

Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg met this month with the government agency that oversees control of the Internet in China.

Sandberg sat down with Cai Mingzhao, head of China’s State Council Information Office, to discuss the “important role” Facebook plays in helping Chinese companies expand abroad. Sandberg and Cai discussed other forms of cooperation but the Chinese government did not specify what those were.

Since it was established on September 29, 2013, the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ) has carried out institutional reform and innovation in areas of investment, foreign trade, finance and post-filing supervision to form a legal framework for investment and trade within the zone.

It has adopted the negative list for investment management, simplified foreign trade supervision procedures, promoted financial system reform to realize RMB capital account convertibility, and advocated post-filing supervision as a way to transform government functions.

The State Council decided on December 28, 2014 to introduce the practices of Shanghai FTZ nationwide and established free trade zones also in Guangdong, Tianjin and Fujian. It approved the expansion of Shanghai FTZ by incorporating Lujiazui Financial Area, Jinqiao Export Processing Zone, and Zhangjiang High Tech Park, enlarging the FTZ from 28.78 square kilometers to 120.72 square kilometers to provide more space for reform trials.

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The China (Shandong) Pilot Free Trade Zone was approved by the State Council on Aug 26, 2019 as one of the 18 pilot free trade zones in China.

Goal

Shandong focuses on nurturing new businesses, developing the marine economy and deepening China-Japan-Republic of Korea economic cooperation at the sub-national level, with the aim of becoming a new bridgehead of China’s opening-up.

Scope of implementation

With a total area of 119.98 square kilometers, the Shandong pilot FTZ covers three areas, including Jinan, the provincial capital, and the coastal cities of Qingdao and Yantai.

Division of functions

Jinan Area, of 37.99 square kilometers, covers Jinan International Financial City, the core area of the Jinan Innovation Zone and the core area of Tangye district. It will prioritize artificial intelligence, industrial finance, health care and elder care, cultural industry and information technology. It will also pilot new systems for developing an open economy. The area is to be established as a center of regional economics, logistics and technical innovation with national influence.

By 2022, Jinan Area is expected to be home to over 20,000 companies and have an output value of more than 1 trillion yuan.

Qingdao Area, of 52 km sq, is located in Qingdao city’s West Coast New Area and incorporates 9.12 square kilometers of the Qingdao Qianwan Free Trade Port Zone and 2.01 square kilometers of the Qingdao West Coast Bonded Area. It takes up 43.3 percent of the total FTZ area in Shandong, and will prioritize modern marine industries, foreign trade, shipping logistics, modern finance and advanced manufacturing to emerge as an international shipping hub in Northeast Asia, a major innovation center in China’s eastern coastal areas and an important costal city in China.

By 2022, Qingdao Area is expected to have no less than 30,000 companies settled, with an import-export volume of $30 trillion, double that of 2018.

Located in Yantai Economic & Technological Development Area, Yantai Area covers a 29.99-square-kilometer district and consists of two state-level industrial parks, Sino-Korea Yantai Industrial Park and 2.26 square kilometers of the western district of the Yantai Free Trade Port Zone.

It will prioritize high-end equipment manufacturing, new materials, new generations of information technology, energy conservation and environmental protection, biomedicine as well as productive service industry. The area is to be established as a pilot area of Sino-Korea trade and investment cooperation, an intelligent manufacturing base of marine equipment and a model area of domestic and international technology transfer.

Pilot Free Trade Zone là gì?

Khu thương mại tự do (free trade zone), còn gọi là khu tự do (free zone) là khu vực do nhà nước xác định, hàng hóa của nước ngoài có thể đem đến, xử lý, chế biến, chia tách, đóng gói, gia công, mà không chịu thuế xuất nhâp khẩu.