Ma Xiangdong: Promoting Deep-level Economic System Reform with High-level Opening-up
Deepening economic structural reform is the focus of further comprehensively deepening reform; it is necessary to accelerate the construction of a high-level socialist market economy and to stimulate the endogenous impetus and innovative vitality of the entire society. The 20th CPC National Congress proposed "building a high-level socialist market economy." The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee further emphasized that further comprehensively deepening reform must "take economic structural reform as the spearhead" and placed "focusing on building a high-level socialist market economy" at the top of the "Seven Focuses" that constitute the general goals of further comprehensively deepening reform. This series of important expositions highlights the great significance of deepening economic structural reform and building a high-level socialist market economy. Currently, existing literature has conducted beneficial discussions on these topics from various perspectives—such as connotative characteristics, practical challenges, factor marketization reform, and Chinese characteristics—but few studies have approached the subject from the perspective of high-level opening up. In fact, persisting in using opening up to promote reform is a historical experience gained through the continuous advancement of China's economic structural reform. Deepening economic structural reform inevitably requires expanding high-level opening up. In October 2024, General Secretary Xi Jinping issued important instructions on the work of National Economic and Technological Development Zones, emphasizing that on the new journey in the New Era, we must "focus closely on advancing Chinese-path modernization, continuously stimulate innovative vitality and endogenous impetus, actively participate in building the new development pattern, and promote deep-level reform and high-quality development through high-level opening up." This is both an important instruction for National Economic and Technological Development Zones and a new requirement for all regions across the country. This article will explore the historical experience, realistic needs, and future paths of promoting deep-level economic structural reform through high-level opening up, with a view to providing a theoretical reference for building a high-level socialist market economy.
Using opening up to promote reform is a historical experience of the continuous advancement of China’s economic structural reform
Opening up is an important driving force for the sustained and rapid development of China's economy; persisting in using opening up to promote reform is a historical experience of the continuous advancement of China's economic structural reform. For more than 40 years of reform and opening up, China's opening up has generally experienced three major waves: the first wave initiated by the Third Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee in 1978; the second wave initiated by joining the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001; and the third wave initiated by the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012. Correspondingly, China's economic structural reform has also generally passed through three major stages: the initial formation, continuous improvement, and accelerated formation of the socialist market economy. Practice has shown that each wave of opening up has effectively promoted domestic economic structural reform, which in turn has powerfully boosted China's modernization drive.
The first wave of opening up promoted the initial formation of the socialist market economy. In December 1978, the Third Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee was successfully convened, marking the start of the first wave of China’s opening up. During this stage, opening up was mainly concentrated on geographical expansion. This round of opening up effectively promoted the initial formation of China's socialist market economy: the establishment and operation of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) and open cities effectively played a role in demonstrating and leading market-oriented reforms; meanwhile, the expansion of opening up nationwide also promoted the gradual roll-out of economic structural reform across the country.
The establishment and operation of SEZs and open cities effectively played a demonstration and leading role in using opening up to promote reform. In May 1980, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council agreed to trial SEZs in Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Shantou, and Xiamen, allowing them to implement special policies and flexible measures in their foreign economic activities, making them "experimental plots" [1] for opening up. In May 1984, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council decided to further open 14 coastal port cities, including Tianjin, Shanghai, and Dalian, implementing specific policies and measures in terms of expanding local authority and granting various incentives to foreign investors. In April 1988, the first session of the 7th National People's Congress deliberated and passed the resolution on establishing the Hainan Special Economic Zone, deciding to build it into the country's largest SEZ. In July 1992, the State Council decided to further open five cities along the Yangtze River, such as Chongqing, Yueyang, and Wuhan; four border and coastal provincial capitals, including Harbin and Changchun; and 11 inland provincial capitals, such as Taiyuan, Hefei, and Nanchang. In 2000, along with the implementation of the Western Development Strategy, opening up was again expanded to the vast western region. By this point, an all-round regional opening-up pattern had basically taken shape. The establishment and operation of SEZs and open cities along the coast and rivers broke through many shackles of the traditional economic system, providing successful experience for the whole country in conducting "pilot trials" for using opening up to promote reform.
At the same time, the promotion and expansion of opening up nationwide also facilitated the gradual roll-out of economic structural reform across the country. First, the formulation and implementation of foreign investment laws and regulations based on the "Three Laws on Foreign Capital" [2] promoted structural reforms in related fields. In July 1979, the second session of the 5th National People's Congress passed the Law of the People's Republic of China on Chinese-Foreign Equity Joint Ventures. In April 1986 and April 1988, the 6th and 7th National People’s Congresses respectively passed the Law of the People's Republic of China on Wholly Foreign-Owned Enterprises and the Law of the People's Republic of China on Chinese-Foreign Contractual Joint Ventures. The foreign investment laws and regulations based on these "Three Laws" introduced the most essential concepts and institutional frameworks of a market economy; they not only provided effective legal protection for China's active utilization of foreign capital but also promoted related structural reforms and policy adjustments, serving as an important precursor and enlightenment for the market-oriented reform of China's legal system. Second, the implementation of policies such as autonomous tariff reductions and the reduction of non-tariff barriers promoted market-oriented reforms in related fields. To join the WTO, China actively advanced opening-up measures in areas such as market access, which simultaneously promoted related market-oriented reforms. For example, regarding autonomous tariff reductions, from 1993 to 2001, three steps of autonomous reductions were implemented, and the overall tariff level dropped from 43.2% at the end of 1992 to 15.3% at the beginning of 2001—a 64.6% reduction over eight years.
The second wave of opening up promoted the continuous improvement of the socialist market economy. On December 11, 2001, China officially became a member of the WTO, initiating the second wave of China’s opening up. In November 2002, the 16th CPC National Congress proposed: "Adapt to the new situation of economic globalization and WTO accession, participate in international economic and technological cooperation and competition over a wider range, in more fields, and at a higher level, make full use of both international and domestic markets, optimize resource allocation, broaden development space, and use opening up to promote reform and development." Subsequently, China's opening up entered a new stage of comprehensive integration into the world economic system. During this stage, China's opening up comprehensively strengthened its alignment with WTO rules, continuously improved the socialist market economy and the related legal system, and effectively promoted the continuous refinement of the socialist market economy.
First, it promoted a series of institutional reforms represented by the reform of the foreign trade system. Take the unification of corporate income tax rates for domestic and foreign enterprises as an example. In March 2007, the Corporate Income Tax Law of the People's Republic of China, passed by the fifth session of the 10th National People's Congress, stipulated that starting from January 1, 2008, domestic and foreign enterprises in China would begin to apply a unified corporate income tax rate, thereby ending the practice of differentiated tax rates for domestic and foreign enterprises that had lasted for more than 20 years. In addition, China fulfilled its commitments for opening up in the field of trade in goods, significantly lowering import tariffs and markedly reducing non-tariff barriers. By January 1, 2010, China had completely fulfilled its commitments for tariff reductions on goods, and the general tariff level further dropped from 15.3% in 2001 to 9.8%.
Second, it promoted market-oriented and law-based improvements in the business environment. During this stage, China continuously improved the legal system for the socialist market economy, gradually establishing a legal system that complied with WTO rules. The Foreign Trade Law of the People's Republic of China, revised in April 2004, explicitly changed the approval system for foreign trade operation rights to a registration system and removed requirements regarding qualification conditions for operation. Subsequently, central departments alone centrally revised more than 2,300 laws, regulations, and departmental rules covering aspects such as trade, investment, and intellectual property protection, comprehensively advancing the reform of the foreign-related economic management system and promoting the continuous improvement of the socialist market economy.
Third, it promoted the joint-stock reform of the four major state-owned commercial banks. China Construction Bank was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the Shanghai Stock Exchange in October 2005 and September 2007, respectively. In 2006, Bank of China took the lead in successfully listing on the Hong Kong and Shanghai Stock Exchanges, becoming the first domestic "A+H" listed bank. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China was simultaneously listed on the Hong Kong and Shanghai Stock Exchanges on October 27, 2006. On July 15 and 16, 2010, Agricultural Bank of China was listed on the Shanghai and Hong Kong Stock Exchanges, respectively. By this point, all four major state-owned commercial banks had completed their joint-stock reforms, providing a successful demonstration for the market-oriented reform of China's banking industry.
The third wave of opening up promoted the accelerated formation of the socialist market economy. In November 2012, the 18th CPC National Congress was successfully convened, marking the start of the third wave of China’s opening up. In November 2013, the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee changed the "basic role" of the market in resource allocation to a "decisive role," and China's economic structural reform thus entered a new stage of comprehensive deepening. Since then, the third wave of opening up—characterized primarily by the construction of Pilot Free Trade Zones (FTZs), the building of a high-standard free trade area network, and the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative—has become an important driving force for promoting China's economic structural reform into a new stage of comprehensive deepening, and the formation of China's socialist market economy has accelerated.
First, the construction of Pilot FTZs has served as the "pathfinder" [3] for promoting deep-level reform. On September 29, 2013, China's first Pilot FTZ was unveiled and began operations in Shanghai. On November 1, 2023, the first Pilot FTZ in the northwestern border region was unveiled in Xinjiang. To date, after seven rounds of expansion, China's Pilot FTZs have reached 22 in number, forming a new pattern covering the east, west, south, north, and center of the country. Since September 2013, the various Pilot FTZs have consistently adhered to institutional innovation as the core and have comprehensively aligned with high-standard international economic and trade rules. They have achieved important breakthroughs in reforms across multiple areas—including trade and investment management systems, financial opening and innovation, the transformation of government functions, and the market-oriented allocation of factors—and have launched many landmark and leading institutional innovation achievements. They have explored new paths for comprehensively deepening reform and effectively played their "lead goose effect" [4] in institutional innovation and market-oriented reform. For example, on October 25, 2024, the State Council replicated and promoted 30 pilot measures from FTZs for aligning with high international standards to advance institutional opening up.
Second, the construction of a high-standard free trade area network has promoted the reform of management systems such as market access, customs supervision, and inspection and quarantine. The 18th CPC National Congress proposed accelerating the implementation of the free trade area strategy. The Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee further proposed forming a high-standard free trade area network facing the globe. Since then, China's free trade area construction has moved into a new stage of high-standard and high-quality development. On August 22, 2024, China and Belarus officially signed an agreement on trade in services and investment. This is the 13th free trade agreement signed by China in the New Era. To date, the number of free trade agreements China has signed with foreign parties has reached 23, involving 30 countries and regions. On November 14, 2024, China and Peru signed a protocol on upgrading their free trade agreement. This is the 6th protocol for upgrading a free trade agreement signed by China in the New Era. Most of the free trade agreements and upgrade protocols signed in the New Era are high-standard agreements, which not only promote the liberalization and facilitation of bilateral and multilateral trade and investment but also promote the market-oriented reform of domestic management systems such as market access, customs supervision, and inspection and quarantine.
Third, the high-quality joint construction of...
The "Belt and Road" Initiative has promoted the enhancement of market-based operational capabilities and market-oriented reforms. Adhering to market operations is one of the principles for the joint construction of the "Belt and Road." In March 2015, the Vision and Actions on Jointly Building Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road, jointly released by the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Commerce, proposed that the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" must adhere to market operations. Since then, in the process of jointly building the "Belt and Road," China has always followed market laws and international common rules, realizing the interest demands of all participating parties through market-based operations. For example, third-party market cooperation is a new model of international economic and trade cooperation explored during the joint construction of the "Belt and Road," and is an innovative move to build an open world economy. As of December 2024, China has signed third-party market cooperation documents with 14 countries, including France and Japan. In the process of promoting third-party market cooperation, the Chinese side insists on enterprises as the main body, market orientation, commercial principles, and international practices, which can generate an imitation-follow effect. This has not only enhanced our country's market-based operational capabilities but also promoted the market-oriented reform of our economic system.
High-quality opening up is a practical necessity for promoting deep-seated economic system reform
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee that "deepening economic system reform remains the focus of further comprehensively deepening reform, and the main task is to improve the systems and mechanisms conducive to promoting high-quality development and to shape new drivers and advantages for development." Since the 18th CPC National Congress, our country has given full play to the decisive role of the market in resource allocation and better played the role of the government. The market system and the macro-control system have been continuously improved, and historical achievements have been made in comprehensively deepening economic system reform, injecting strong momentum into promoting high-quality development. Despite this, factors restricting high-quality development still exist. Promoting Chinese-path modernization through high-quality development still faces some new problems in terms of innovation-driven development, coordinated development, green development, high-level opening up, and common prosperity. Therefore, the task of deepening economic system reform remains arduous. Advancing Chinese-path modernization with high-quality development requires using economic system reform as a lead to further comprehensively deepen reform, breaking down obstacles, stimulating vitality, and opening up new frontiers by building a high-level socialist market economy system.
As stated previously, persisting in promoting reform through opening up is the historical experience of the continuous progress of our country's economic system reform. Similarly, high-quality opening up is also a practical necessity for promoting deep-seated economic system reform in the new stage. Promoting high-quality opening up and building a new system for a higher-level open economy is not only a practical need to improve the systems and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces, but also an inevitable choice for creating new advantages in international economic cooperation and competition, and a realistic requirement for promoting the construction of an open world economy.
Expanding institutional opening up is a practical necessity for improving the systems and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces. Developing new quality productive forces requires solid advancement in institutional innovation to form new relations of production that adapt to them. To this end, the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee placed "improving the systems and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions" at the top of the comprehensive deployment for "improving the systems and mechanisms for promoting high-quality economic development," emphasizing the need to "strengthen the innovation of key generic technologies, frontier leading technologies, modern engineering technologies, and disruptive technologies, and strengthen the institutional supply for new fields and new tracks." To achieve innovation in key generic, frontier leading, modern engineering, and disruptive technologies, the Chinese market must possess a strong gravitational pull to aggregate global high-end production and technological innovation resources. Expanding institutional opening up can further form a stable, transparent, and predictable institutional environment, which is conducive to making full use of global innovation resources, promoting independent innovation from a higher starting point, and creating a favorable institutional environment for the development of new quality productive forces. Therefore, expanding institutional opening up is a practical necessity for improving the systems and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions. Since the New Era, marked by the construction of Pilot Free Trade Zones (FTZs), the building of a high-standard free trade area network, and the hosting of the three major exhibitions including the China International Import Expo [5], our country's institutional opening up has entered a new stage of steady progress. However, the implementation of the strategy to upgrade Pilot FTZs and the construction of a high-standard free trade area network still require further advancement of institutional innovation.
First, the implementation of the strategy to upgrade Pilot FTZs still faces some problems and deficiencies in terms of aligning with high-standard international economic and trade rules, reform pilot autonomy, and systematic integration of reforms, requiring a batch of leading reforms to be carried out. First, compared with high-standard international economic and trade rules, the degree of opening up in service sectors such as finance in our country's Pilot FTZs is still not high enough; "behind-the-border" [6] opening measures in areas such as intellectual property rights, competitive neutrality, regulatory consistency, digital trade, and environmental protection still need to be strengthened. Second, the autonomy of reform pilots in FTZs is not yet large enough, and there are still few integrated and systematic institutional innovations. Third, the coordinated development between various FTZs still needs to break through institutional obstacles. For example, the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei FTZ needs to break down regional fragmentation and hidden barriers [7], solving the institutional obstacles in the flow of factors, industrial links, and market unification in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region to form an efficient flow and concentration of factors.
Second, the construction of a high-standard free trade area network still faces problems such as the need to expand its spatial scope and improve rules and standards. First, the spatial scope needs to be expanded. Currently, there is still significant room for expansion in establishing free trade areas with neighboring countries as well as with countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative. Second, the rules and standards need to be improved. Currently, the coverage rate of high-standard rules such as labor standards, environmental protection, and e-commerce in the free trade agreements signed by our country still needs to be increased.
Deepening the reform of the foreign trade and foreign investment systems is an inevitable choice for creating new advantages in international economic cooperation and competition. Currently, the traditional advantages of our country's high-quality economic development have weakened, while international competition is becoming increasingly fierce, making it urgent to accelerate the enhancement of new advantages in international economic cooperation and competition. Deepening the reform of the foreign trade and foreign investment systems is an important path to creating these new advantages. Since the New Era, our country has continuously deepened the reform of the foreign trade and foreign investment systems, creating favorable conditions for the sustained creation of new advantages. However, continuous efforts are still needed in areas such as accelerating the reform of domestic and foreign trade integration, reducing "behind-the-border" barriers, and optimizing the business environment.
First, accelerating the reform of domestic and foreign trade integration is a long and arduous task. Accelerating the integrated development of domestic and foreign trade is of great significance for building a strong domestic market, maintaining the stability of industrial and supply chains, and constructing the new development pattern [8]. Since the New Era, the management system for China's domestic and foreign trade integration has been gradually improved, and important progress has been made. However, there are still shortcomings such as unsmooth integrated development at different levels of enterprises, products, industries, and management systems. From the perspective of enterprises, the operational focus of domestic and foreign trade enterprises is still relatively separate; from the perspective of products, there are still large differences in technology, quality, and standards of some domestic and foreign trade products; from the perspective of industries, there are still large differences in the integrity of the domestic and foreign trade industrial chains and key links; from the perspective of the management system, the domestic and foreign trade management systems of many local governments remain fragmented. Therefore, it is necessary to promote the integrated development of domestic and foreign trade through further comprehensively deepening reform, resolutely breaking the "two layers of skin" [9] predicament of fragmentation and poor coordination, eliminating institutional barriers, and optimizing the environment for the integrated development of domestic and foreign trade.
Second, "behind-the-border" barriers still exist in different forms. Since the New Era, our country has deeply promoted the implementation of fair competition policies, encouraged fair competition among various market entities, and effectively reduced "behind-the-border" barriers to factor flow. However, it must also be seen that various "behind-the-border" barriers still exist in different forms. For example, the consistency of regulatory systems and standards with international economic and trade partners needs improvement. Furthermore, some local governments still have different forms of hidden market access barriers, such as disguised approvals and local protectionism. Moreover, there is still a certain gap between some of our country's current rules and systems and international high-standard rules and systems. Therefore, we must take the initiative to align with international high-standard rules and further reduce "behind-the-border" barriers to factor flow.
Third, the business environment still needs to be further optimized. Optimizing the business environment is an effective way to reduce institutional transaction costs and create new advantages in international economic cooperation and competition. Since the New Era, reforms in key areas have been deeply advanced, and the national business environment has been continuously optimized, but there is still a certain gap compared to a market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized first-class business environment. In terms of a market-oriented business environment, there are still problems such as unsmooth factor flow, low efficiency in resource allocation, and weak micro-economic vitality. In terms of a law-based business environment, there is a need to continuously improve the level of the rule of law in the business environment and constantly sound the legal and institutional system for the business environment. In terms of an internationalized business environment, it is still necessary to absorb and draw lessons from the experience of mature international market economic systems and accelerate the alignment of domestic institutional rules with international ones.
Improving the mechanism for promoting the high-quality joint construction of the "Belt and Road" is a realistic requirement for promoting the construction of an open world economy. In recent years, economic globalization has encountered countercurrents, with a few countries engaging in "decoupling and breaking chains" and building "small yards with high fences," while promoting the diversion of "reshoring, near-shoring, and friend-shoring." Currently, the uncertainty of the external environment facing our country's development has risen significantly, necessitating the promotion of an open world economy to create a more favorable external environment for high-quality development and Chinese-path modernization. The Belt and Road Initiative is a major practice for promoting the construction of an open world economy and advancing inclusive and balanced economic globalization. Increasing cooperation in new areas such as green development, digitalization, and innovation is an important measure to push the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" into a new stage of high-quality development. In recent years, our country and partner countries have made positive progress in promoting the construction of the Green, Innovative, and Digital Silk Roads, but under the new situation, they still face new problems and challenges, requiring further improvement of cooperation mechanisms.
First, the construction of the Green Silk Road faces multiple constraints. Promoting the green development of the "Belt and Road" is an important carrier and key content for promoting its high-quality development and building a community of life for man and nature. In recent years, significant results have been achieved in the green development of the "Belt and Road." However, it should also be seen that it currently faces multiple constraints. One is that the economic development level of partner countries is generally not high; they are in a historical turning point between seeking development and seeking ecological protection, and green development may be difficult for them to realize. Second, the overseas green development capabilities of Chinese enterprises cannot yet fully adapt to the new situation; their awareness of green development is not strong, and experience in overseas green investment needs to be accumulated. Third, affected by factors such as insufficient and unbalanced institutional supply, a series of difficulties—such as insufficient green development policy support, unsound green exchange and cooperation platforms, and an imperfect environmental risk prevention and control system—urgently need to be broken through. Therefore, the mechanism needs to be further improved.
Second, the construction of the Digital Silk Road faces three potential challenges. Currently, the Digital Silk Road still faces three major challenges: First, digital infrastructure is still relatively insufficient. Since most partner countries are developing nations, the construction of digital facilities such as communication base stations and optical cables started late, which restricts the in-depth development of the "Digital Silk Road." Second, data ownership and privacy protection still require in-depth exploration. "Digital Silk Road" cooperation will drive massive data and information flows, and the efficacy of data factors will increase rapidly with the data development and opening of various countries, but it will also give rise to a series of security issues. Third, more consensus needs to be reached on global digital governance. The rapid development of the digital economy has put forward higher requirements for international standards and rules in the digital field, but currently, a unified international digital governance rule framework has not yet been formed globally.
Third, the construction of the Innovative Silk Road faces three major constraints. The core connotation of the high-quality joint construction of the "Belt and Road" is to build it into a "Road of Innovation." In recent years, important progress has been made in the innovative development of the "Belt and Road." However, it must also be seen that current technological innovation cooperation faces multiple constraints. First, China's own innovation leadership capability needs to be further enhanced. At present, there are still obvious shortcomings in China's capacity to lead in technological and institutional innovation; original innovation capabilities need urgent improvement, key core technologies need to be broken through, the overall efficiency of the independent innovation system needs to be continuously increased, and the capacity to lead in institutional innovation is still insufficient. Second, the scientific and technological development foundation of some partner countries remains weak. Most partner countries have insufficient R&D investment and weak scientific and technological infrastructure such as laboratories and research equipment. The limited education levels in some partner countries make it difficult to provide sufficient talent support. Third, the uncertainty of international scientific and technological cooperation continues to increase. Some Western developed countries have "over-securitized" and "over-politicized" technological innovation, using "de-risking" as an excuse and "decoupling and breaking chains" as a means to build "small yards with high fences," increasing the uncertainty of international scientific and technological cooperation.
Key paths for promoting deep-seated economic system reform through high-quality opening up
Adhering to the principle of promoting reform through opening up is a historical experience gained from the continuous advancement of China's economic structural reform. High-quality opening up is a practical necessity for promoting deep-level economic structural reform in the new stage, and properly handling the relationship between the government and the market remains the core issue of economic structural reform. Since the New Era, our Party has persisted in the reform direction of the socialist market economy, advancing market-oriented reforms in both breadth and depth, thereby providing institutional and mechanistic guarantees for high-quality development. Nevertheless, "the relationship between the government and the market has not yet been fully rationalized." In the future, we must further rationalize this relationship, better combine a promising government with an effective market, further advance high-quality opening up, and use high-quality opening up to promote deep-level economic structural reform, providing new momentum for advancing Chinese-path modernization.
We must steadily expand institutional opening up to create a favorable institutional environment for boosting the development of new quality productive forces. Steadily expanding high-level institutional opening up is an important focus for promoting deep-level reform and high-quality development through high-quality opening up. The Resolution of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee placed "steadily expanding institutional opening up" at the forefront of the comprehensive deployment for "improving the institutions and mechanisms for high-quality opening up." The essence of institutional opening up is to allow the market to play a more important role in allocating the cross-border flow of goods and factors. On the new journey in the New Era, we need to further promote market-oriented reforms in related fields and create an institutional environment conducive to the development of new quality productive forces by deeply implementing the strategy to upgrade pilot free trade zones and expanding the network of high-standard free trade areas oriented toward the globe.
First, we must deeply implement the strategy to upgrade pilot free trade zones to further promote market-oriented reforms in related fields. One aspect is to coordinately advance the construction of various opening-up platforms, such as pilot free trade zones, the Hainan Free Trade Port, key development and opening-up experimental zones in border areas, and inland open economy experimental zones, granting them greater autonomy in institutional innovation to create new highlands for institutional opening up. Second, in qualified pilot free trade zones and free trade ports, we should conduct pilot programs to align with high-standard international economic and trade rules to advance institutional opening up, promoting the release of policy dividends over a wider scope. We must also further strengthen the systematic, holistic, and synergetic nature of reform to explore more successful experiences that are replicable and generalizable for comprehensively deepening reform. Third, we should support each pilot free trade zone in further deepening differentiated explorations, focusing on key areas such as the digital economy, biomedicine, and equipment manufacturing, to promote integrated innovation and development across entire industrial chains, forming more institutionalized innovation achievements for the development of new quality productive forces.
Second, we must expand the network of high-standard free trade areas oriented toward the globe to further promote the reform of management systems in related fields. Centering on the three aspects of "expanding coverage, improving quality, and increasing efficiency," we should further deepen the construction of free trade areas with trading partners. Regarding "expanding coverage," we should strengthen the alignment of development strategies and coordination of economic and trade policies with South Asian countries, improve free trade agreement arrangements with them, and further release the potential for trade and investment cooperation; we should initiate feasibility studies for a China-UK Free Trade Area and promote the negotiation and signing of free trade agreements with more interested countries. Regarding "improving quality," we should further raise the level of market access, actively participate in rule-making in emerging fields such as the digital economy, environmental protection, and industrial and supply chains, and establish compliance mechanisms that interface with prevailing international rules to further promote reforms in management systems such as market access, customs supervision, and inspection and quarantine. Regarding "increasing efficiency," we should further implement signed free trade agreements, such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), with high quality, helping enterprises make full and effective use of preferential policies to further release the economic effects of opening up.
Third, we must expand autonomous opening up and unilateral opening up to the least developed countries (LDCs) to enhance the linkage effects of "dual markets and dual resources" [10]. On one hand, we should expand autonomous opening up and market access to attract and utilize foreign investment with greater intensity. While continuing to expand opening up in manufacturing, mining, and agriculture, we should orderly expand opening up in the commodity, service, capital, and labor markets through measures such as reasonably shortening the negative list for foreign investment access and conducting pilot programs to relax access in the field of scientific and technological innovation. On the other hand, expanding unilateral opening up to LDCs will better benefit the people of all countries. This is a new requirement proposed by the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee and a concrete action by China to promote the joint construction of an open world economy and a community with a shared future for humanity. In the future, we must implement this new requirement effectively so that the fruits of Chinese-path modernization benefit more countries and people.
We must deepen the reform of the foreign trade system and accelerate the construction of a "trade powerhouse." Deepening this reform is an important path for promoting deep-level economic structural reform through high-quality opening up. On the new journey, we must address current shortcomings and weaknesses in the foreign trade system by accelerating reforms for the integration of domestic and foreign trade, reducing "behind-the-border" barriers [11] that restrict the flow of factors, and innovatively developing digital trade to accelerate the construction of a trade powerhouse.
First, we must accelerate the reform for the integration of domestic and foreign trade and optimize the environment for their fused development. One way is to promote the alignment and integration of rules and systems by facilitating the connection of standards, inspection and certification, and supervision, and by promoting the "same line, same standard, same quality" (三同) [12] for products sold both domestically and abroad. Another way is to facilitate the connection of market channels. On one hand, we should support foreign trade enterprises in expanding into the domestic market by organizing activities to promote high-quality foreign trade products for domestic sale and encouraging centralized procurement. On the other hand, we should support domestic trade enterprises in exploring international markets by strengthening training in new business forms and models such as cross-border e-commerce and offshore trade. Additionally, we should leverage exhibitions such as the Canton Fair, the China International Import Expo (CIIE), the China International Consumer Products Expo (CICPE), and the Global Digital Trade Expo to facilitate the alignment of supply and procurement between domestic and international markets.
Second, we must reduce "behind-the-border" barriers to factor mobility and innovate development mechanisms for service trade. We must continuously improve the institutional supply in the field of market supervision and consistently strengthen the unification of basic market systems and rules. By improving a unified property rights protection system and maintaining a unified fair competition system, we can explore institutional arrangements and policy supplies that adapt to the regulatory requirements of mature market economies, creating a stable, orderly, safe, and reliable environment for all market players, thereby providing a fair and orderly competitive environment for the free flow of talent, capital, technology, and other factors. We must also deeply implement fair competition policies and continuously break down "hidden barriers" to market access. We need to accelerate the cleaning up and abolition of various regulations and practices in different regions that involve local protectionism or market fragmentation, and strictly conduct fair competition reviews for newly issued policies to avoid problems such as "the big door is open but the small door remains shut" [13].
Third, we must construct institutional and policy frameworks to innovatively develop digital trade. We need to formulate rules for cross-border data flows and establish a network security guarantee system. Under the premise of ensuring data security and personal privacy, we should facilitate the free flow of data and break down data barriers. We should also strengthen network security legislation and improve the network security review system to ensure the safe and reliable operation of digital trade. Furthermore, we should strengthen international cooperation in the digital economy, actively promote the process of joining the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA), and establish a sound digital trade governance regime. Finally, we should accelerate the cultivation of leading enterprises and "specialized, refined, differential, and innovative" (SRDI) [14] enterprises in digital trade to enhance their market positioning and international competitiveness.
We must deepen the reform of the foreign investment management system to attract global high-quality resources and factors to take root in the Chinese market. Foreign investment is a crucial link connecting the domestic and international "dual circulation" and a vital force for smoothing the links of production, circulation, and consumption, as well as an important participant in Chinese-path modernization. Creating a market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized first-class business environment is an essential path for attracting high-quality global resources. On the new journey in the New Era, we must target current weaknesses in the business environment, further deep the reform of the foreign investment management system, and accelerate the creation of a world-class business environment.
First, we must accelerate the construction of a "unified national market" and create a market-oriented business environment characterized by fair competition. Fair competition is a fundamental principle of the market economy, an objective requirement for a unified national market, and a long-term theme of China's corporate development policy, reflecting the broader trend of changing global economic and trade rules. Therefore, we must promote a better combination of an effective market and a promising government. On one hand, by improving market mechanisms such as price, competition, and supply and demand, and deepening the market-oriented reform of factors like labor, capital, and land, we can give full play to the decisive role of the market in resource allocation and further stimulate social creativity and market vitality. On the other hand, by accelerating the construction of a high-efficiency, standardized, fair, and fully open unified national market, the government can better perform its role, improve resource allocation efficiency, further release market potential, and provide strong support for constructing a new development pattern and promoting high-quality development.
Second, we must deeply advance the rule of law to create a transparent and law-based business environment. This involves continuously improving the legal framework for the business environment and speeding up the revision or abolition of regulations and policy documents inconsistent with the Foreign Investment Law and the Regulation on Optimizing the Business Environment. We must also enhance the transparency of law enforcement by disclosing information, improving records, increasing public participation, strengthening internal supervision, and training personnel, as well as establishing a unified information platform for enforcement.
Third, we must expand market access to create an open and inclusive internationalized business environment. We should reasonably shorten the negative list for foreign investment and promote the orderly opening of sectors such as telecommunications, the internet, education, culture, and medical care. We should align with high-standard international intellectual property rules, improve protection regulations, and strengthen the institutional construction for protecting trade secrets. Furthermore, we should improve service guarantees, increase efforts to attract foreign investment, expand the Catalogue of Encouraged Industries for Foreign Investment, and improve systems for the convenience of overseas personnel regarding entry, residency, medical care, and payments.
We must improve the mechanisms for promoting high-quality Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) cooperation and promote the construction of an open world economy. Against the backdrop of headwinds against globalization and unprecedented challenges to the global governance system, high-quality BRI cooperation has become a key force for global development. Facing new requirements, we should adhere to the principle of "enterprises as the main body, market operations, government guidance, and international rules." We should improve the BRI cooperation mechanisms in areas such as technological innovation, green development, and the digital economy to ensure the initiative's steady and long-term progress.
First, we must form a "twin-wheel drive" of an effective market and a promising government to improve the BRI technological innovation mechanism. The government should primarily play a role in setting the direction of technological development, investing in joint R&D, and building multinational cooperation platforms. We should leverage the advantages of the "new-type whole-nation system" [15] to achieve breakthroughs in frontier fields with clear directions and mature technologies under key government support, thereby significantly enhancing China's original innovation capabilities. Meanwhile, private institutions should play an active role in specific R&D organization, the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements, and exploring forms of international cooperation. We must give full play to the independence and initiative of innovation actors across industry, academia, and research.
Second, adhering to government guidance and the enterprise as the main body, we must improve the BRI green development mechanism. The government should refine the support and guarantee system for green development, implementing the "Green Investment Principles for the Belt and Road" in key areas such as green infrastructure, energy, and finance. Through fiscal subsidies, tax incentives, and green finance, the government can promote the R&D and application of green technologies. Meanwhile, enterprises should assume responsibility for green development by integrating environmental concepts into the entire lifecycle of projects and promoting energy conservation and circular economy technologies to enhance the "green competitiveness" of their projects.
Third, adhering to government guidance and the enterprise as the main body, we must improve the...
The "Belt and Road" digital economy mechanism. On one hand, it is necessary to actively leverage the guiding role of the government to accelerate the cultivation of new business forms and models for cooperation in the digital field. This involves actively promoting the interconnectivity of digital infrastructure and accelerating cooperation in fields such as cross-border e-commerce, smart cities, the Internet of Things (IoT), and 5G. At the same time, efforts must be focused on bridging the digital divide [16] to ensure that the dividends of digital economic development tangibly benefit the people of all nations. On the other hand, it is essential to leverage the principal role of enterprises and research institutions while adhering to market-oriented operations. Enterprises participating in the joint construction of the "Belt and Road," especially technology firms, should be encouraged to carry out technical and business model innovation to enhance the international competitiveness of the digital economy. Simultaneously, cooperation among participating enterprises should be promoted in areas such as digital infrastructure, e-commerce, smart cities, and artificial intelligence to form complete digital economy industrial chains.
(The author is a researcher at the Research Center for the Theoretical System of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics of the Beijing Municipal Party School)
Source: People's Tribune·Academic Frontiers, Issue 13, 2025 Web Editor: Ma Jingren