Full Text: Report on the Work of the Government (8)

We will ensure that overcapacity is cut, costs are lowered, and business performance is improved.

We will focus on addressing the overcapacity in the steel, coal, and other industries facing difficulties. In this process, the market should serve as a check, enterprises should be the major actors, local governments should play a coordinating role, and the central government should provide support. We will use economic, legal, technological, environmental, quality inspection, and safety-related means to strictly control the expansion of production capacity, shut down outdated production facilities, and eliminate overcapacity in a planned way. We will address the issue of "zombie enterprises" proactively yet prudently by using measures such as mergers, reorganizations, debt restructurings, and bankruptcy liquidations. Fiscal, financial, and other policies will be improved to support this work. One hundred billion yuan in rewards and subsidies will be provided by the central government, which will be mainly used to resettle employees laid off from these enterprises. We will take a full range of measures to reduce the transaction, logistics, financial, and energy consumption costs of enterprises, and work to put a stop to the collection of arbitrary and unwarranted fees from enterprises and be strict about investigating and punishing violations of regulations.

-- We will work to ensure the supply of goods and services is improved.

We will concentrate our efforts on the following three areas:

First, we will see that the quality of consumer goods is improved. We will move faster to bring domestic quality and safety standards in line with international standards, and establish a system for making producers pay punitive compensation for failing to meet product quality standards. We will also encourage enterprises to use flexible and custom-tailored production processes and foster a craftsmanship spirit of striving for the best, so that more types of products, products of a higher quality, and brand products will be made.

Second, we will work to upgrade manufacturing. We will intensify efforts to promote the integrated development of Made in China 2025 and the Internet Plus action plan; build national platforms for innovation in manufacturing; carry out demonstration programs in smart manufacturing; launch projects to build a more solid foundation for industry development, promote green manufacturing, and develop high-end equipment; and carry out major technological transformation and upgrading initiatives.

Third, we will accelerate the development of the modern service sector. We will launch a new round of national pilot projects for all-round service sector reform as well as projects to promote innovation in high-tech services, and channel great efforts into developing the digital creative industries. We will relax restrictions on market access to the service sector, and ensure greater specialization in producer services and higher refinement in consumer services. Fiber-optic networks will be developed in a number of cities and 50,000 administrative villages will be linked up to fiber-optic networks, thus enabling more urban and rural residents to enjoy a more digital way of life.

-- We will push for progress in SOE reform.

This year and next, we will use reform to promote the development of SOEs and push hard to ensure success in upgrading them and improving their performance. We will prompt SOEs, especially those managed by the central government, to make structural adjustments so that some will be developed through innovation, others will be reorganized or merged, and still others will exit the market. We will carry out reforms to diversify their types of equity and introduce on a trial basis the assumption of powers and responsibilities by corporate boards of directors, competitive open selection and recruitment of executives, recruitment of professional managers, mixed ownership, and employee equity stakes. We will deepen the reform of the enterprise personnel management system and explore the possibility of establishing remuneration systems for senior ranking personnel and corporate executives that are compatible with competitive selection and recruitment. We will work faster to establish state capital investment and management companies through reorganization. To prevent the loss of state assets and ensure their value is maintained or increased, we will encourage state-owned asset supervisory and management authorities to shift their focus to the use of state capital. Local governments will be granted more power over SOE reform. We will move more quickly to relieve SOEs of their obligations to operate social programs and resolve their other longstanding issues, enabling them to become leaner and healthier and to increase their core competitiveness.

-- We will energize the non-public sector.

We will significantly relax restrictions on entry into markets such as electricity, telecommunications, transport, petroleum, natural gas, and municipal public utilities, remove hidden barriers, and encourage private companies to increase investment in these areas and participate in SOE reform. In these fields, private companies will enjoy the same treatment afforded to SOEs in terms of project verification and approval, financing, fiscal and tax policies, and land availability. We will, in accordance with the law, provide equal protection to the property rights of entities under all forms of ownership; and we will ensure that, without fail, infringements on the legitimate rights and interests of non-public sector enterprises and individuals are investigated and prosecuted. We will create a rule of law environment that is fair, just, transparent, and stable and establish new government-business relations to help all types of enterprises develop side by side based on their own respective strengths.

3. Tap the potential of domestic demand to increase the space for development

We will work to achieve a moderate expansion of aggregate demand, adjust and reform the composition of demand, strive for better alignment between supply and demand and between investment and consumption, and work to achieve greater balance in the development of urban and rural areas and of different regions. This will create steady and long-term domestic demand to sustain economic development.

-- We will strengthen the foundational role of consumption in promoting economic growth.

To adapt to the trend toward high-end consumption, we will remove policy barriers, improve the consumer environment, and safeguard the rights and interests of consumers. We will support the growth of consumption in elderly care, health services, housekeeping services, educational and training services, and cultural and sports services. We will work to strengthen the growth of emerging areas of consumption such as information goods and services, smart homes, and personalized fashion. We will promote coordination, interaction, and fair competition between the online and the offline and encourage physical stores to transform themselves through innovation. We will help ensure the improvement of logistics networks and the healthy development of express delivery services. We will work to stimulate the second-hand car market, channel great effort into developing and promoting the use of new-energy vehicles, particularly electric vehicles, and move faster to build urban car parks and install charging facilities. We will carry out nationwide trials to set up consumer financing companies and encourage financial institutions to develop new consumer credit products. We will cut import tariffs on some consumer goods and increase the number of duty-free stores. We will ensure people are able to take their paid vacations, strengthen the development of tourist and transport facilities, scenic spots and tourist sites, and recreational vehicle parks, and see that the tourist market operates in line with regulations. With these efforts, we will usher in a new era of mass tourism. (mo