Lingang unveils new measures for high-level opening-up

Ten new measures were introduced by a digital young woman named Youna on Friday as the latest efforts by Lingang as a test ground at China's forefront of the important mission of aligning with international high standard economic and trade rules, and promoting high-level opening-up.

The presentation was given during the main session of the Conference on the High-Level Opening-Up of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone Lingang Special Area.

Youna, a digital avatar of the special area, introduced the measures in detail for the improvement of the international market environment, trade and investment environment, government service environment, legal environment, and cultural ecological environment.

The measures would also strengthen the provision of land, talent, data, and social undertakings that support the production and operation of foreign-funded companies.

Various foreign-funded headquarters enterprises and industry chain-leading roles would be encouraged to integrate into the industry chain, innovation chain, and value chain of Lingang's cutting-edge industries and modern service industry development, according to Youna.

Ti Gong

Party secretary of Lingang Chen Jinshan said that Lingang would always take institutional innovation as its core, technological innovation as its driving force, advanced manufacturing as its support, and cross-border service trade as its characteristic to create an open institutional system, scientific and technological innovation system, industrial system, service industry system, and business environment.

"Lingang will embrace the world with a more open attitude, and lead development with greater innovation," Chen said in a keynote speech on Friday.

Zhang Peitao, who works at Medtronic as head of business strategy, therapy innovation and localization for CRM, MCS, and CDS, spoke to Shanghai Daily that Lingang has supported an organic growth of Medtronic.

"The management of the company unanimously believes that being deeply rooted in Lingang is a wise move in the development process of Medtronic," Zhang said.

Lenny Chu, co-head of HSBC Holdings, Global Banking, China, said that innovative and open measures such as the pilot program for facilitating cross-border trade in Lingang would effectively empower HSBC's financial service capabilities.

HSBC would base itself in Lingang to provide high-quality services for foreign-funded companies entering China and Chinese enterprises going global, Chu said.

Sun Canglong, chairman of the Lingang Special Area Economic Development Co Ltd, added, "The institutional innovation taking place in Lingang provides great confidence to industrial development, and great impetus to introduce businesses."