Minister Chen in FT
Minister Chen Deming of MOFCOM recently published an op-ed piece in the FT. This is apparently in response to the earlier criticisms against China's indigenous innovation policies (which has been changed) and its offer in the GPA accession negotiation, which has been perceived as insufficient.
2010-07-28 15:21 文章来源：商务部新闻办公室
文章类型：原创 内容分类：新闻
近日，商务部部长陈德铭在英国《金融时报》上发表署名文章《繁荣的中国将更加开放》（英文标题为"Thriving China is ever more open for business"），全文如下：
Thriving China is ever more open for business
For the last year, China has expanded domestic demand and worked to attract foreign investment, contributing to the global recovery. However, concerns have recently been floated, not least among foreign businesses, that China is now less welcoming of foreign investment. In fact, China will open wider in the future.
China has kept its market open throughout the financial crisis. In late 2008, we adopted a Rmb4,000bn stimulus package, along with readjustment programs in sectors such as information communication technology, logistics and equipment manufacturing. Companies have followed strict tender rules to ensure a level playing field for all businesses – Chinese or foreign. In 2009, of 12,439 tenders for procurement of electromechanical products, 55 per cent went to foreign investment enterprises.
Over the last three decades, foreign direct investment has brought capital, advanced technologies and business know-how to China. We understand that FDI fosters innovation. That is why, in April, we held a public consultation to review the criteria we use to accredit "innovation products". The results emphasized that all foreign enterprises are given equal treatment and that all their products are considered to be "made in China", while the same rules of origin are applied to them as to Chinese products.
Since joining the World Trade Organization, China has continually lowered the entry threshold for foreign investment. We have revised our catalogue for the guidance of foreign investment industries – the official list of industries in which FDI is encouraged or restricted – four times since 1997. Each time we have provided greater market access. Writers such as Thomas Friedman, author of The World Is Flat, and Robert Shapiro, former US undersecretary of commerce under President Bill Clinton, have spoken highly of our efforts to open up.
China remains a top destination for investment by multinational companies, particularly in services and outsourcing. In 2009, global FDI dropped by nearly 40 per cent, but investment into China fell by only 2.6 per cent. Reacting to worries in the west, China has also strengthened intellectual property protection with new laws and a "double-track" system of administrative and criminal enforcement.
Crisis-hit multinationals have found new sources of profit growth in China. In 2009, General Motors filed for bankruptcy in the US, but its sales in China grew by 67 per cent. It sold more than 1m vehicles in China in the first five months of this year, meeting half of its 2010 target of 2m ahead of schedule. Siemens will invest €1bn ($1.29bn, £843m) in the next three years, with Volkswagen adding €1.6bn by 2011. In 2010, there were 690,000 registered foreign companies in China, investing more than $1,000bn.
These companies drive growth abroad through their Chinese operations. They create valuable trade surpluses for neighbouring countries by importing intermediate goods, and create jobs in developed countries by buying capital goods and services.
Such growth will continue as China expands its internal market. Sales of consumer goods rose in 2009 to Rmb12,530bn, contributing more than half of gross domestic product. This year China's domestic market will grow by Rmb2,000bn ($295bn, £193bn, €229bn), outstripping exports. The US is set to gain in particular. The independent American Chamber of Commerce in China recently published a report arguing that in the next 30 years the US can achieve "three trillion-dollar goals": $1,000bn for annual US exports to China, $1,000bn for revenues of US businesses in China producing goods and services for the Chinese market, and $1,000bn for cumulative Chinese FDI in the US.
Coming out of crisis, China must now work to upgrade its own industries in areas such as high-end manufacturing and environmental goods and services. To do this, China wants to make better use of the knowledge and expertise of multinationals. German carmaker Daimler's success in forming a joint venture in China to develop next-generation electric vehicles is only one example of how more foreign investment can help.
The world economy is at a crucial stage of restructuring. As China works with others to push the global recovery, tremendous opportunities will open up for foreign companies. China remains open for business, and the rest of the world can benefit.
繁荣的中国将更加开放
过去一年多来，中国政府努力扩大国内消费，积极吸收外商来华投资，为世界经济复苏做出了贡献。然而，近来出现了一些担忧，特别是在外企中间，认为中国不再像以前那样重视和欢迎外资了。事实上，中国今后将更加开放，中国市场的大门始终对外资敞开。
在金融危机期间，中国政府坚持对外开放政策不动摇。2008年末，我们推出了规模为4万亿的一揽子刺激方案，同时启动了电子信息业、物流、装备制造等产业的调整和振兴规划。在一些重点领域投资和建设项目招标过程中，我们为所有企业（不管是中国企业还是外国企业）创造公平的竞争环境。例如，在2009年中国开展的12439个机电产品国际招标采购项目中，外资企业中标数占项目总数的55.4%。
30多年来，外商直接投资的引入不仅带来了资金，更带来了先进的技术设备、管理和经营理念，有力地促进了中国经济制度、技术和管理创新。正因如此，我们在今年4月公开征求意见，对"自主创新"产品的认定标准进行了调整，上述结果说明，所有外国企业都得到了一视同仁的对待，他们的产品被视为"中国制造"，和中国企业的产品适用同样的原产地规则。
自从加入世界贸易组织以来，中国不断降低外资准入门槛。1997年以来，我们4次修订《外商投资产业指导目录》——该目录是鼓励或限制外国直接投资进入的行业的官方名录，每次修订我们都会进一步扩大市场准入范围。《世界是平的》一书的作者托马斯•弗里德曼，以及曾在美国总统比尔•克林顿时期担任商务部副部长的罗伯特•夏皮罗等众多专家均高度肯定中国的对外开放。
目前，中国仍是跨国公司投资的首选目的地，特别是在服务业和外包行业。2009年，全球外国直接投资下降近40%，但对华投资仅下降2.6%。作为对西方担忧的回应，中国不断加大保护知识产权力度，制定了一系列比较完整、在世界上也比较先进的保护知识产权法律体系和行政执法、刑事执法双轨的执法机制。
在危机中遭遇巨大冲击的跨国公司，在中国找到了新的发展空间和增长点。2009年，通用汽车在美国申请破产，但该公司在华销售却增长了67%。今年头5个月，该公司在华销量超过100万辆，提前完成了今年目标（200万辆）的一半。西门子计划未来三年在华投资10亿欧元（合12.9亿美元)，而2011年之前，大众将在华追加16亿欧元的投资。截至今年5月底，在华注册外资企业数量累计近69万家，实际利用外资总额超过了1万亿美元。
这些跨国公司通过在华经营带动了其海外发展，同时也通过大量的中间品进口为周边国家和地区创造了贸易顺差，通过资本品、奢侈品和服务贸易进口为发达国家创造了大量的就业机会。
随着中国扩大其国内市场，这种增长势头仍将继续。中国2009年实现社会消费品零售总额12.53万亿元人民币，对国内生产总值的贡献率达到50%以上。今年，预计今年国内市场规模将超过2万亿美元，远远超出中国的出口总额。美国将肯定从中获益。中国美国商会日前发布报告称，在未来30年的中美关系中，美国可以实现"三个1万亿"目标，即美国对华商品和服务年出口额1万亿美元、美国企业在华产值1万亿美元和中国对美累计投资1万亿美元。
在走出危机的同时，中国必须致力于自身的产业结构调整和升级，积极发展高端制造业以及环境产品和服务等领域。中国政府希望继续发挥跨国公司在这些领域的人才、技术、管理优势，促进中国加快转变经济发展方式。近日德国戴姆勒公司在华设立合资企业开发新一代电动汽车，这是外国投资将在中国发挥更大作用的一个很好例证。
世界经济正处在结构深化调整的关键时期。随着中国与其它国家共同推动全球复苏，将会给外国企业带来巨大的商机。中国将继续坚持对外开放，全球其它国家将因此受益。
