Measures counter impact of pandemic

Guideline on business seeks to promote development of online health services

SHIYU/CHINA DAILY

The State Council has adopted a package of measures to facilitate investment and widen market access to improve the business environment and help counter the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Key policies include the removal of unreasonable market access barriers in the construction, education, healthcare and sports sectors, improving the efficiency of customs clearance and encouraging the growth of new business models.

The 20 measures, unveiled in a guideline released by the General Office of the State Council on July 21, are the central government's latest effort to slash corporate burdens and energize market players after the COVID-19 pandemic caused the economy to contract by 1.6 percent in the first half of the year.

The office pledged to continue with prudent and accommodating oversight of new business models, including measures to phase out unreasonable administrative policies.

To better facilitate investment, the government highlighted the need to cut licensing red tape to expedite the approval of projects, including those in the construction sector, and to enable easier production and sale of industrial products, including automobiles and secondhand vehicles.

Sellers of secondhand vehicles will receive a boost as the authorities are set to abolish restrictions on the location of registration and simplify registration procedures for purchasers.

China added about 20,000 new businesses a day in the first half of the year despite the impact of the pandemic, Yang Hongcan, head of the State Administration of Market Regulation's Business Registration Bureau, told a news briefing on Wednesday.

Yang said one-stop online services for starting a business will be offered across the country by the end of this year, and the approval period will be shortened to a maximum of four days.

The application of electronic business certificates and seals will be further promoted, and restrictions on the business venues of smaller businesses and self-employed individuals will be reduced, he said.

The guideline includes specific measures to scale up aid for exporters and importers, many of whom are reeling from the downturn in international trade caused by the pandemic, with the country's foreign trade down by 3.2 percent year-on-year in the first half of the year.

The government will expand one-stop services in international trade to logistics at ports and trading services and reduce barriers to investment by foreign trading businesses and their operations.