SZ selected to pilot expanded opening up of service sector

Shenzhen and eight other cities have been approved to carry out comprehensive pilot programs to accelerate the opening up of the services sector, the State Council announced Friday.

Efforts should be made to expand voluntary opening up in an orderly manner, tap into the potential of China's supersized market, promote high-quality development of the services sector, and contribute to building new institutions for a higher-standard open economy, according to the State Council.

The pilot programs will cover key sectors such as finance and health care and include measures like improving social security services for foreign residents and promoting inter-hospital data sharing, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

This latest expansion marks the fourth time that the pilot programs have been extended to include more cities since they were first implemented in Beijing in 2015. In 2021 and 2023, the programs were further expanded to cover nine cities, including Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Chongqing, as well as Hainan Province.

An aerial view of Shenzhen Bay. Liu Xudong

The pilot programs in Beijing led to specific opening up measures, including advancing reforms in technological services and innovation, boosting the development of the digital economy and trade, strengthening reform and innovation in financial services, and fostering greater global cooperation through internet services.

One of the main reasons why these programs are important is that they help increase foreign investment, which is at the heart of opening up efforts, according to the Ministry of Commerce. For example, a spike in foreign investment has driven the optimization and upgrading of China's industrial structure, which has strengthened the country's ability to meet demand.

Huo Jianguo, vice chairman of the China Society for World Trade Organization Studies, said the opening up of the services sector is a key task for China to expand high-level opening up because openness in the sector, especially in digital trade, is widely considered an important new growth point worldwide.

The services sector has emerged as a powerful growth driver for China's economy, contributing 54.6% to its economic growth in 2024.

Since joining the WTO in 2001, China has been fully fulfilling its commitments, accelerating the opening up of its services sector to the outside world, and successfully boosting trade in services.China's services trade has steadily expanded in scale, optimized its structure, and enhanced overall global competitiveness. Its annual trade in services exceeded US$1 trillion for the first time last year, demonstrating significant potential for further growth.