China issues guideline for online-offline commerce connection

China's State Council on Tuesday issued a guideline to boost the connection between online and offline businesses to spur market vitality.

According to the guideline, the government supports physical stores to advertize and sell their products and services on the Internet and asks them to improve delivery and after-sale services to enhance consumer experience. They are also encouraged to maintain 24-hour interactions with consumers.

China will speed up the use of mobile Internet, big data, Internet of Things, cloud computing, the Beidou Navigation System, positioning, and biological identification in authentication, transaction, payment and logistics.

The government encourages Internet companies to partner with physical stores so that their advantages will be combined.

E-commerce and modern logistics will be introduced to commodity trade centers to improve resources allocation and increase logistics efficiency.

The government backs export-oriented logistics companies to build warehouses overseas and vows to nurture the development of cross-border e-commerce.

China will also push ahead with online-offline connections in businesses concerning people's daily life, such as catering, tourism, traffic and entertainment.

The country will try to make commerce "smarter" in cities, and expand the reaches of e-commerce and logistics to more rural areas.

To facilitate online-offline commerce connection, China will slash government approvals and further cut red tapes. Fiscal and financial support will also be unveiled. Endi