Article by Marry
China’s foreign trade policy is stepping in the new balance beam.
Financial crisis from one side of the pressure before exports, now “stable to expand import export,”, policy makers policy focus in producing a subtle but significant changes.
In 2011, after the Spring Festival, in view of the present situation and China’s imports of import the reform of the management system, including the ministry of commerce, the relevant ministries in southeast coastal provinces, the intensive investigation for June forthcoming national import working meeting preparation.
According to the present management system of import of the two-trade policies and industry illness policy “DingNiu”, import formalities trival increase the cost, this meeting will give the more clear decision-making of way of thinking.
The financial state weekly “the reporter learns, a covers hundreds of import tax cuts directory will be discussed at this meeting, to provide enterprises through the import convenience services to further expand import rules will also announced.
Trade policy “DingNiu” industrial policy
Jiangsu ChangDian technology Co., LTD of Chen wei the company responsible for the import business, mainly from Japan and other developed countries import large machine tool equipment, the company application of these imported equipment production supporting the camera phone.
In recent years, Chen wei in the work will always have some tough questions. Countries pay for imports large equipment to drop, the main reason is the domestic already have the manufacturer can produce the corresponding equipment. “But no matter from performance and life to see, homebred than imported.” Chen wei said.
Is it choose cheaper products, domestic or foreign quality good choice, but the price is high, but also to additional high tariff and value added tax product? Enterprise faced dilemma.
“Country almost every year of duty-free imported large equipment revised catalogue, the exemption policy tightening in gradually.” Jiangsu province of business hall, an official said.
Facing a 10% tariff and the value added tax of 17%, many enterprises have to choose to import of used equipment. But for old equipment overseas but to experience a cb is more tedious process, the import of time is also relatively long.
In recent years to protect domestic industry, the state to offset printing machine, automatic winding machine etc textile machinery, cylinder of medical equipment and processing equipment is off the import tax, tax-free scope is shrinking. This change is mainly from industry Angle consideration, relevant domestic industries to protect and promote trade policy in the service domestic economy.
Begin from 2009, the import tax has larger adjustment to import duty free products, tariff cuts first, and value added tax relief, and no longer and the first levied against after the measures.
From the point of view of the industrial policy, after the first levied against transformation and upgrading of enterprises have certain stimulative effect. However, the policy is objectively inhibit the enterprise the enthusiasm of import. A lot of advanced equipment of high total imports, the value added tax of 17% apparently occupied the enterprise a lot of cash flow, make a lot of enterprise in the policy changes under.
For the urban sewage treatment, the hospital imported advanced equipment, some of the new high technology and new technology enterprise that, no value added tax is worth, in fact, drive up this kind of unit equipment cost of imports.
Enterprise has imported advanced equipments demand, industrial policy will have to protect appeal, the relationship the how to coordinate the? Trade policy is subject to industrial policy? Or industrial policy should take the trade policy?
“The current the interests of the game is always see who voice big, listen to the who.” A person close to the government departments to reporters, and many times and not from the interests of the whole country into consideration.
For the interests of the balance, a scholar to inspect the suggestion that domestic industry, and how the technology and the maturity can not blindly take protection policy. “The Chinese car industry is protected DuoNian 50, also failed to produce a lot of technical breakthrough. Later, several market opening national brand also development up. So simple protection does not necessarily make good national industry.”
But there are also expert thinks, from another point of view, if this field technology maturity really high, adopt a certain protection means can effectively support the national industry, or the field of the working population huge, so the necessary industry is the need to protect.
Small problems, big trouble
Import trade involves the customs, quality inspection, taxation, foreign exchange and other DuoGe department, customs clearance need after each link, facilitation to become the enterprise expand imports have to face a difficult problem and.
Wine is of Shanghai food import products accounted for a class of goods is larger, the import amount in 2010 more than 5000 yuan RMB. According to the provisions of China inspection and quarantine, every bottle of imported wine all need to put Chinese label. But, labels, the provisions of the regulations on very general, make enterprise is hard to control.
Enterprise often need to face the reality is, the design good Chinese label let the inspection and quarantine department review after approval, let foreign manufacturers in the packaging ago labeled Chinese label. But goods imported into China, but they are often told that label is unqualified, need to please the inspection and quarantine department’s affiliate help heavy stick qualified tags. That a, make a container an increase of 6000 yuan to 7000 yuan charge. Even for the standard, sometimes enterprise directly please affiliates design label, but imports cif, may also appear tags do not qualified.
“Everything is in the rules are general label, the administrative personnel to many discretion”, the secretary of the board of directors of Shanghai food import and export company, legal director LiuXinMin said.
And this kind of discretion, also appears in various customs ports, brings to the enterprise to a lot of trouble. The customs in addition to the discretion of the commodity classification, also have on commodity prices at the discretion of the examination and approval.
Jiangsu China trade import and export company ChengDan tells a reporter, the company mainly imported iron ore, iron ore prices with the international market fluctuations around the customs according to his will, in the database for the price, if the enterprise for the high import prices, then the enterprise offer calculation. If the price of the enterprise is a couple of months ago and merchants agreement than the current market price, price low, then the customs in the database, and high prices, market is the so-called “is high and low” not.
“I’ve heard that 5% of the amount of tax levy customs will left to local economic construction, so get from other customs for taxes are a evaluation and index all over, of course, are willing to put the import prices high.” some review ChengDan said.
The import convenience, look be like small problems, but come together, but to become the enterprise daily walk around to meet the big trouble.
Shanghai foreign trade in commerce, deputy director of the LuoZhiSong said they had a import trade manual, but haven’t been a year, the manual is a failure, because involves the import tax exemption and management measures and other policies change very fast. They calculated, involving all kinds of goods import department there are 20 DuoGe, at any time there are new policies, many of the goods import procedures they foreign trade place also don’t know, must ask detailed corresponding can understand the enterprise.
“The biggest problem is the import trade facilitation problem, enterprise expect import faster, and more convenient, more transparent information.” LuoZhiSong said, “import article pretty difficult, sometimes even if down tariffs, but non-tariff measures have various obstacles, caused the enterprise the high costs of cost, and eventually they cost are added to the consumer head.”
Ministries response
On May 17,, the national development and reform commission, ministry of finance, the ministry of commerce issued jointly by the 2011 edition “encourages import technology and product catalogue. Earlier, the ministry of commerce, the national development and reform commission in early march, the ministry of finance and other ministries released “about” 1025 “during the implementation of active of the import of mechanical and electronic products to promote strategic certain opinions”. In June, the national import work conference will put forward ideas and more further action.
All of these policies, all points to “expansion import” the direction.
In April, China’s trade surplus at .423 billion, far higher than expected that in the quarter 1 ~ 3 to 1 ~ 4 a deficit of .28 billion in the surplus, import growth slows down and export growth speed up is the main reason for the large surplus appear. The return of the surplus to pressure China to revalue the renminbi by again.
“Decrease surplus, promote balanced” is China recently very important one of the goals of the economy. And to reduce the path of the surplus, China take “strategy is stable, expand the export import” way.
In 2007, China’s surplus to a record 2.2 billion, when the state has adopted a pressure to the export enterprise, and with export industry employment population huge, simply “pressure export” had a bad outcomes, and then of the global financial crisis, pressure to be stopped exports.
For a long time, China’s foreign trade policy has been taken “award in the limit of the principle of” a close to the ministry of commerce, analysts say, even if the Chinese each department for import view or not the same, “Wolf” view still exists.
Experts told reporters, each department for different industries, may in the present protection measures to expand import big strategic impact. Therefore, the department of the brewing directory game pretty intense, tax cuts scheduled for march this also let at a national import working conference procrastinated.
Also has the scholar said the tax cuts directory and the import convenience measures into practice, also can’t even effective mass to cut the deficit, it is by Chinese big stage of development and industrial structure of the decision.
Commerce ministry spokesman said in YaoJian accept the financial state weekly “reporter to interview also said, import main market factors, the initiative in depends on the hands, that is imported is ultimately determined by domestic demand.
