Guangzhou taking steps to get biz back on track

Guangzhou, Guangdong province, is sparing no effort to attract more offshore investment and stimulate consumption as the country is optimizing its COVID-19 policies and measures.

The southern metropolis, known as a millennium commercial capital, should work harder to introduce concrete and effective measures to boost its economic vitality to help maintain stable growth, said Chen Yanchuan, deputy director of the Guangzhou bureau of commerce.

Chen made the remarks at a news conference in this provincial capital on Wednesday.

According to Chen, his bureau will organize two investment delegations to visit Japan, South Korea, Germany and Switzerland to attract investment for its pillar industries of automobile industry chains, biomedicine, electronics, machinery and equipment, and help local foreign trade companies increase their presence in overseas markets before the end of the year.

The delegations will visit major multinational enterprises there to seek expansion of cooperation, he said.

"And two investment and trade promotion fairs will also be organized in Tokyo and Switzerland," said Chen.

Meanwhile, Chen's bureau provides facilitation guidance for international investors and business executives to come to Guangzhou through optimization of the inbound prevention and control process.

"Now foreign CEOs and senior executives can be organized to directly conduct business negotiations with their Chinese counterparts in a closed loop environment upon arrival in Guangzhou," Chen added.

As an international consumption center city, Guangzhou will introduce more effective measures and organize a series of promotional events to stimulate consumption in the weeks to come, he said.

The Guangzhou International Fashion Industry Conference, Guangzhou International Shopping Festival, the 3rd E-commerce Festival (Guangzhou) and Guangzhou International Food Festival will be organized in the city later this month while the China (Guangzhou) International Auto Show, one of the three A-level international auto events in China, will kick off on Dec 30, said Chen.

The city's relevant departments have also issued more than 3.4 million consumer coupons to help stimulate consumption since May, he added.

Ke Xiandong, deputy director of the Guangzhou bureau of culture, broadcast, television and tourism, said a series of cultural, sports, tourism, singing, dancing and theatrical performing events will be organized to help attract tourists and spur consumption later this month.

Xiao Fengchun, deputy director of Yuexiu district, said his district has reduced taxes valued at 3.86 billion yuan ($555 million) and rent worth 200 million yuan for local companies and market entities that have been affected by the pandemic.

"The district has also helped facilitate loans valued at 61.44 billion yuan to local companies," Xiao said.

In addition to promotional events held by local companies and shopping centers, a series of cultural and entertainment events, including the traditional Cantonese style temple fair and spring festival flower fair, will be organized in the downtown area before the Chinese Lunar New Year that begins on Jan 22, said Xiao.

Yin Jie, assistant to the general manager of GAC group, said GAC produced 2.28 million vehicles and sold 2.23 million of them in the first 11 months of this year, up 21.9 percent and 16.6 percent, year-on-year, respectively.

The company, one of the major carmakers in the country, achieved an industrial output value of 396.3 billion yuan from January to November, up 29.7 percent year-on-year, Yin said.