New policy to boost digital trade development

Recently, the Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Commerce and Shenzhen Development and Reform Commission jointly issued an implementation plan for promoting high-quality development of service trade and digital trade. 

The comprehensive plan outlines 20 key initiatives across four core areas: promoting efficient flow of trade resources and factors, innovating digital trade development, comprehensively enhancing service trade, and improving support, promotion, and safeguard systems. The goal is to accelerate Shenzhen’s service and digital trade international competitiveness.

The plan places strong focus on stimulating innovation in digital trade’s specialized sectors, upgrading key fields in service trade, nurturing and expanding enterprises “going global,” and facilitating cross-border flow of resources and factors. For instance, pilot programs on data cross-border flow with a “negative list” system are being launched in areas like Qianhai and Hetao. Shenzhen is also developing security assessment guidelines for outbound scientific research data in the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone. 

The plan proposes piloting expanded liberalization of value-added telecommunications services. It aims to consolidate and advance Shenzhen’s advantages in digital technology trade, digital product trade, and digitally ordered trade, while leveraging cutting-edge digital technologies to empower digital service trade development and laying early groundwork for data trade.

While maintaining traditional service trade strengths, the plan calls for rapid formation of significant advantages in international transportation, scarce professional services, and international finance. It also responds to the global trend of deep integration in supply chains and value chains by further promoting the fusion of service trade with goods trade, high-end manufacturing, and offshore trade, enhancing diversity and synergy across business formats.