Regulators aiming for brighter environment in 2022

China will strengthen regulatory enforcement over industries including platform economy in the year to come but will also ensure a stable business environment for all kinds of market entities to develop, said the country's top market watchdog.

Zhang Gong, head of the State Administration for Market Regulation, said in a recent interview to Xinhua News Agency that the administration will pay equal attention to regulation and development for all types of market entities in 2022.

"More regulatory enforcement will be made in key areas like the platform economy, technological innovation, information security and people's livelihoods, as well as further improvements to the review mechanism for fair competition and law enforcement on monopolistic behavior," Zhang said.

"This is because with the gradual formation of an ultra-large-scale market in China, profound changes have taken place in the competitive and cooperative relations among various market entities. Also, capital is growing while monopolistic behavior coexists with some administrative monopolies," he added.

But at the same time, Zhang highlighted the importance of stabilizing the market in 2022, saying that accelerated steps will be made to ensure a stable development environment for all kinds of market entities, a stable market order as well as fair market supervision.

"While paying closer attention to the impact of demand contraction, supply shortages and weakening expectations for market entities－especially small and micro-sized enterprises－market regulators will also improve policy accuracy and effectiveness to help them cope with such pressure for better development," he said.

He also said the country's market entities reached 150 million in China this year and 70 percent of them are active operators, which will be a precious resource for economic stability and long-term development.

In general, the country aims to build a business environment that is market-oriented, effective and international, as well as a fair, transparent and stable institutional environment for all market entities, Zhang said.

In terms of detailed measures, he said China will ensure its market entry and licensing rules are streamlined, efficient and fair, provide more convenient services for market entities, and reduce administrative costs for transactions.

"The remarks mentioned stabilization and development several times, which clearly shows that the country is putting the development of market players as a top priority. Only when these market entities develop vigorously can the economy develop sustainably," said Zhong Gang, executive director of the Competition Law Research Institute at the East China University of Political Science and Law in Shanghai.