Event highlights
insi d e amcham
Record Crowd for Free Trade Zone Event On October 29, AmCham Shanghai hosted the first of a series of events centered around the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ), “Perspectives on the China (Shanghai) Free Trade Zone,” which attracted a record of more than 300 guests. AmCham Shanghai President Kenneth Jarrett noted in his opening remarks that the FTZ is part of the ongoing reforms Shanghai is pursuing to become an International Financial Center by 2020. Brice Yong Zhang, deputy director general of the Financial Services Bureau in the Pudong New Area; Shao Yu, chief economist and chief strategist for Orient Securities Company; and Andrew Au, CEO of Citi China, shared their thoughts on the Shanghai FTZ and what it means not only for China, but for international companies and future negotiations for China regarding the Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) with the United States and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The speakers said that allowing the flow of China’s currency, the renminbi, in the offshore market back into the onshore market will be a key piece of the FTZ and broader financial reforms. Another topic discussed was the move to a “negative list” approach, which speakers agreed was an overall positive development. Previously, China used a “positive list” and a Foreign Investment Catalog to limit foreign investment to defined sectors and industries. If an industry did not appear on the list, it was forbidden for investment by foreign firms. With the move to a negative list, if an industry does not appear on the list, it is open to foreign investment. Noting that Shanghai is hoping to reach a five-year target for the services sector to account for 65 percent of GDP by 2015, the FTZ offers opportunities for those international companies – particularly in global auditing and accounting, shipping and logistics, and finance – to take advantage of interest rate liberalization and other financial reforms by providing various financial products, they said. For more information about the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone, visit AmCham Shanghai’s information page: www.amcham-shanghai.org/ftz.
Brice Yong Zhang, deputy director general of the Financial Services Bureau in the Pudong New Area, speaks during an event on the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone
46
insi g h t
december 2013