China to promote trade liberalization, facilitation at Hainan port

The State Council Information Office holds a press conference on the master plan for the Hainan free trade port in Beijing, capital of China, June 8, 2020. Last week, Chinese authorities released a master plan for the Hainan free trade port, aiming to build the southern island province into a globally-influential high-level free trade port by the middle of the century. (Xinhua/Pan Xu)

BEIJING, June 8 (Xinhua) -- China will take orderly measures in cutting tariffs and removing non-tariff barriers to enhance trade liberalization and facilitation at the Hainan free trade port, officials said Monday.

The country will support free trade of commodities by granting zero-tariff treatment in an orderly manner and remove non-tariff barriers such as permits and quotas, Vice Commerce Minister Wang Shouwen told a press conference.

In the first stage, certain goods will be exempt from import duties, import value-added tax and consumption tax before 2025, including production equipment for enterprises' own use and qualified transport and tourism vehicles, raw and auxiliary materials and consumer goods for the island, said Vice Finance Minister Zou Jiayi.

Import duties will be exempt on all imported goods other than those listed in the catalog of imported taxable commodities after 2025, Zou added.

Wang also noted that China would make a pioneering negative list this year for cross-border service trade at the port to facilitate cross-border delivery, overseas consumption and the flow of people. Cross-border service trade not on the list will be granted free entry into the port.

The port will further relax the policy on duty-free shopping by raising the limit of purchase from 30,000 yuan （about 4,230 U.S. dollars) to 100,000 yuan per person each year and expanding the categories of duty-free goods, Zou said.