February PMI data show growing optimism on China's economy

Fresh snapshots of China's manufacturing and non-manufacturing sectors showed a more positive outlook on the economy despite a seasonal dip in factory activities.Official data released on Thursday showed China's manufacturing sector expanded at a slower pace in February.The country's manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) came in at 49.2 in February, narrowing from 49.5 in January, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below reflects contraction.The sub-index for production, a major factor used in calculating PMI, edged down 1.4 points to 49.5 in February, while the sub-index for new orders rose to 50.6, an indication of expansion.NBS senior statistician Zhao Qinghe attributed the monthly decline in the manufacturing PMI to seasonal factors including production halts around the Chinese Lunar New Year.Zhao also noted the growing strength of new sources of growth, as the sub-index for production of the high-tech manufacturing sector continued to rise.Activities of hi-tech enterprises in the sectors of pharmaceutical manufacturing and communication equipment showed above-average vitality, Zhao said.Commenting on the February manufacturing PMI data, investment banking firm CICC said China's domestic demand is showing signs of recovery."Deflationary pressure receded in February, and production and business expectations rebounded visibly," CICC said.Thursday's data showed a four-month high reading of 56.2 for the production and operation expectations index, a marked rise of 3.7 points from January."Manufacturing PMI may rebound in the near term if the moderately reflationary credit cycle sustains," CICC said.The non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index came in at 54.3 this month, which means the non-manufacturing sector remained within the expansion range, according to the NBS.Indices for sectors including railway and air transport, telecom, banking and leasing stood above 55, indicating robust business growth.Market sentiment is improving as sub-indices for new orders and business expectation picked up by 0.3 and 1.8 points respectively from January, indicating growing service demands, the NBS said.The construction sector saw its activities shrink due to the Spring Festival holiday and bad weather but is likely to pick up the pace in the future as data shows rising business expectations.Source: China Daily

Liaoning aims to improve the R&D and manufacturing capabilities of High-end Equipment in 8 major fields

A few days ago, the Liaoning Provincial Government issued a work plan, clearly targeting the eight major areas, and accelerating the construction of an Advanced Equipment Manufacturing base with the international competitiveness.The Advanced Equipment Manufacturing Base is an important property for the development of high-end industries in Liaoning. Liaoning Province will focus on making excellent and strong aviation equipment, offshore equipment and high-tech ships, energy-saving vehicles and new energy vehicles, and major complete sets of equipment, developing and expanding high-end CNC machine tools, robots and intelligent equipment, advanced rail transit equipment, and integrated circuit equipment. In 8 major areas, Liaoning will implement key projects and cultivate key projects, and strive to achieve significant improvements in equipment manufacturing capabilities.The key projects implemented in these eight areas have clearly defined the timetable, task book and road map for industrial development. The plan proposed deepen institutional reform, promote industrial transformation and upgrading, and enhance the level of external cooperation. Accelerate the introduction of talents and other aspects, and provide convenience and guarantee for the construction of an advanced equipment manufacturing base with international competitiveness.The plan also proposes that by 2020, Liaoning Province's equipment manufacturing industry's main business income will strive to exceed 800 billion yuan, digital R&D and design tools penetration rate will reach 75%, break through 50 key core technologies, and develop 30 major influential national targets，the creation of more than five national-level research and development platforms, and format the high-end equipment in Shenyang, Dalian as the center, the "specialized and special" equipment in other regions as the supporting advanced equipment manufacturing industry development pattern.

Hainan steps on the innovation pedal

Hainan, China's largest free trade zone with a higher-level of opening-up policies, has made considerable progress in its efforts to create a favorable environment for innovation in the island province, according to provincial officials.The FTZ, the 12th such in the country, said an improved, efficient business environment, better intellectual property protection and diversity in financial products were among its significant achievements."Systemic innovation has been the core of Hainan's efforts ... we have achieved considerable progress," said Sun Dahai, deputy secretary-general of the Communist Party of China Hainan Provincial Committee.To vitalize the market, the province has simplified the business registration process on its electronic platform and shortened verification time to just three days. Manual verification is only required for special cases, said Sun.According to government data, the FTZ sees roughly 382 new applications every day for business approvals."It is very easy and fast for a company to open a bank account, register and get all necessary licenses and approvals in Hainan. That, in itself, is a big change in the overall business environment," said Zheng Xiaobo, general manager of Hainan ITG Co Ltd, a joint venture between Hainan Provincial Development Holdings Corp Ltd and Xiamen ITG Group Corp Ltd."Of course I miss my previous job and life, but I love coming to Hainan and contributing to the growth of the FTZ," he said.Innovation in financing for intellectual property was another major achievement in Hainan after the island province issued the country's first IP asset securities late last year with plans to raise 470 million yuan ($69.5 million) of funds.At present, most of the patents owned by small and medium-sized enterprises in Hainan were not put into efficient use, and companies were facing difficulties such as shortage of funds, lack of adequate financing channels and insufficient transformation of intangible assets into profits.Through the securitization of intellectual property assets, the problem was efficiently solved, according to the local government. It is considered a brand-new model for the application of intellectual property rights and a new financing tool for small and medium-sized enterprises.Wei Pengju, director of the institute of cultural economics at the Beijing-based Central University of Finance and Economics, said: "We hope the policy moves and reforms that Hainan is undertaking will accelerate the progress in securitization of intellectual property assets."Hainan has also come out with various insurance products to ensure a good rubber harvest, a core agricultural product in the local economy. According to the government, if the price for rubber falls to below 12 yuan per kilogram, it would become unviable for farmers."Natural rubber is an important agricultural product and a strategic product. It is also an important avenue for a large number of farmers in Hainan to increase their income and improve their lives," said government officials.At present, Hainan produces around 360,000 metric tons of natural rubber every year, accounting for 44.12 percent of the country's total production, involving more than 700,000 farmers and providing jobs to over 2 million people in the industrial chain.In some parts of Hainan, rubber sales account for 60 percent to 70 percent of the total income. However, the international prices of rubber have remained depressed in recent years, posing threats to Hainan's economy and the province's pillar industry.Hainan has come out with two different insurance modes for private buyers and State-owned buyers so that farmers will get an assured payment of at least 12 yuan per kilogram along with insurance guarantee.Hainan set up the country's first trading center for international tropical agricultural production in January.The trading center will continuously improve the trading mechanism in Hainan, strengthen the construction of a digital platform, and optimize the service mode, said Yang Sitao, chairman of Hainan State Farms Investment Holdings Group. "It will help introduce more tropical agricultural products from Hainan and overseas countries onto the platform for trading."Source: China Daily

Shanghai will implement an action plan to optimize the Business Environment

This year, Shanghai will officially launch a plan to further optimize the business environment, and clarify further reform goals and reform tasks.1.In terms of starting a business, this year Shanghai plans to reduce the step number from 4 to 3, and the processing time will be reduced from 9 days to 3-5 days, and the cost also will be reduced.2.In terms of construction permits, this year Shanghai plans to reduce the step number from 19 to 14 and the processing time will be reduced from 169.5 days to 97 days. The quality control index and cost will maintain the existing results and strive to improve.3.In terms of access to electricity, this year Shanghai plans to reduce the step number from 3 to 2, and the average time for electricity accessing is reduced to no more than 20 days.4.In terms of property registration, this year Shanghai plans to reduce the step number from 4 to 2, the processing time will be reduced from 9 days to 5 days, and the quality index to increase from 23.5 to 24.5.5.In terms of cross-border trade, this year Shanghai plans to keep the border compliance time for imports within 48 hours, and the border compliance fee will be reduced from 335 US dollars to 316 US dollars; the document compliance time will be reduced from 24 hours to 8-10 hours, the compliance fee was reduced from $120 to $70. On the export side, border compliance time will be reduced from 23 hours to 16-20 hours, border compliance costs will be reduced from $305 to $293; document compliance time will be reduced from 8 hours to 6-8 hours, and document compliance costs will be kept it within $70.6.In terms of taxation, this year Shanghai plans to reduce the total tax rate and social contribution to around 65%, and reduce the tax time to 130 hours, keeping other indicators performing and seeking to improve.Shanghai will continue to promote a high level of openness, and on the basis of deepening the implementation of the "100 open expansions", it will launch a number of openning measures.

Greater Bay Area becomes domestic talent magnet, report shows

The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area has become a rising destination for talent inflow, while still having much potential for attracting global professionals, a report showed.The region is one of the most attractive hubs for digital professionals in China, as it outperforms Beijing and Wuhan in digital talent inflow, according to a joint survey released Saturday by Tsinghua University and LinkedIn China based on the company's samples of 439,000 high-level talents and 118,000 talents working in the information and communication technology (ICT) sector in the area.China earlier this week unveiled a development blueprint for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, aiming to turn the region into a world-class city cluster and a powerful engine for reform and opening-up.Understanding and optimizing the human resources pattern will help propel the coordinated growth of different sectors and cities in the region, according to Wang Yanping, head of China Public Policy and Government Affairs at LinkedIn.The Greater Bay Area has the largest proportion of high-level talents in manufacturing, consumer goods and ICT, with over 10 percent for each of the three industries, the report showed.Technological and industrial innovation in big data, artificial intelligence, intelligent manufacturing, financial technology and other fields will become an important driving force and strategic support for developing the area, said Chen Yubo, head of the Center for Internet Development and Governance of Tsinghua University.The report also observed that the area appeals to global talents but needs to further boost its magnetism. Talent inflow from the United States and Britain outweigh the reverse flows, while inflow from Australia and Singapore lag behind the reverse flows.Shenzhen is the most appealing city both in terms of domestic and international talent flow. The tech hub is also the most magnetic city within the region.Hong Kong enjoys a large talent pool, but its talent exchange lags far behind Shenzhen and Guangzhou while Macao lags even further behind, leaving much room for the two special administrative regions to boost talent exchange with mainland cities.Compared with the San Francisco Bay Area and Sydney Bay Area, the Greater Bay Area shows stronger research and development capabilities but needs to catch up in entrepreneurship, according to the report.Source：China Daily

“Shanghai Opportunity” continues to be optimistic about foreign investment

Foreign capital is an important part of China's economic development, and Shanghai has always been a hot spot for China to attract foreign investment. In the past 2018, there were 5,597 new foreign-funded projects in the city, a year-on-year increase of 41.7%; contractual foreign investment was 46.937 billion US dollars, up 16.8% year-on-year; the real foreign investment was 17.3 billion US dollars, up 1.7% year-on-year. The number of projects, contractual foreign investment, and real-time foreign investment have increased simultaneously.In January 2019, there were 563 new foreign-funded projects in the city, a year-on-year increase of 69.1%. The contractual foreign investment exceeded US$10 billion, reaching US$10.97 billion, a year-on-year increase of 197.6%, and the actual foreign investment was US$1.422 billion, a year-on-year increase of 33.5%.According to statistics, in January, Shanghai set up 552 new foreign service industry projects, real foreign investment of 1.284 billion US dollars, an increase of 24.8%, accounting for 90.3%. Among them, the business service industry actually reached 645 million US dollars, an increase of 66.5% year-on-year, accounting for 45.4%; the technology service industry actually reached 146 million US dollars, an increase of 263.8%, accounting for 10.3%. Other major investment areas are real estate (real foreign investment of 176 million US dollars, accounting for 12.4%), and commerce and trade (real foreign investment of 121 million US dollars, accounting for 8.5%).The relevant person in charge of the Municipal Commerce Commission said that in 2019, they will adopt a fixed-site and fixed-time approach, continue to target Foreign-funded Enterprises, organize 12 round-table meetings on government-enterprise cooperation, and meet face-to-face with Foreign-funded Enterprises to understand the operation of Foreign-funded Enterprises.