(Yicai) July 22 -- China has unveiled a set of 12 measures to encourage foreign companies to reinvest their profits in the country.

The measures span six key areas -- project services, land allocation, administrative procedures, foreign exchange, financial channels, and financial innovation -- according to a notice jointly issued by the National Development and Reform Commission, the People’s Bank of China, and five government departments on July 18.

Highlights include: setting up a reinvestment project database, with qualified projects being potentially added to the major foreign‑investment projects list; offering flexible industrial land deals, such as long-term leasing and rent-to-own options to reduce initial land costs; streamlining industry access and permit approvals for parent companies and their subsidiaries; and allowing the domestic transfer of foreign-exchange funds with no separate reinvestment registration required.

The NDRC, the state planner, noted that the measures further demonstrate China’s willingness to support multinational companies in making long-term investments and deepening their presence in the Chinese market.

Over 30,000 new foreign-funded businesses were set up in China in the first half of the year, a 12 percent increase from a year earlier, according to commerce ministry data, while foreign direct investment in actual use fell more than 15 percent to CNY423.23 billion (USD58.9 billion).

To attract more foreign investment, the NDRC said it will roll out a new batch of foreign investment projects and revise the Catalogue of Encouraged Industries for Foreign Investment to guide more foreign capital into advanced manufacturing, modern services, high-tech, energy conservation, and environmental protection, as well as central, western, and northeastern regions.

The new measures will help boost foreign investment expectations and confidence, supporting foreign firms in continuing to deepen their development in China, said Yuan Shenglong, director of the comprehensive office at the Institute of Foreign Economic Research under the China Academy of Macroeconomic Research.

Allowing more qualified projects to be included in the major foreign‑investment projects list will help to steer and motivate more foreign businesses to reinvest in key industries, helping those sectors shift from labor‑ and resource‑intensive models to capital‑ and technology‑driven growth, Yuan noted.

FDI in actual use in the Chinese mainland has exceeded the target of USD700 billion for the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025) six months in advance, Commerce Minister Wang Wentao said on July 18.

Editor: Futura Costaglione