Small firms should also think global

China's State Administration of Taxation very recently and very publicly reported that the value-added tax, or VAT, reforms introduced earlier this year have reduced the tax burden incurred by China's army of small businesses by 40.6 billion yuan ($6.57 billion). The administration also noted that a total of 1.29 million of China's small businesses have been helped by these reforms.

This is indeed welcome news, especially at a time when domestic consumption and the growth of smaller Chinese companies are pivotal to China's economy.

But will tax savings necessarily lead to a more competitive, innovative and market-oriented Chinese small business sector? And will tax savings encourage China's small businesses to venture overseas and climb the internationalization ladder more quickly and effectively?