Key meeting in China makes new arrangements to boost private sector: official

The recently concluded Central Economic Work Conference has made new, important arrangements for the private economy, with the focus on three aspects, including addressing issues related to fair competition, according to a Xinhua report on Monday, citing a senior official.

In a report published on Monday, the official from the Office of the Central Committee for Financial and Economic Affairs, offered an in-depth interpretation of the spirit of conference which was held from Wednesday to Thursday and where Chinese leaders decided priorities for the economic work in 2025.

"The Central Economic Work Conference made new important arrangements based on the new situation and new issues in the development of the private economy," the official said, noting that the focus is on three areas.

In terms of further addressing issues related to fair competition, relevant work will be further carried out next year, including further breaking down market access barriers, supporting capable private enterprises to take the lead in major national technological research tasks, as well as formulating guidelines for a unified national market to optimize the market access in new business forms and new fields, according to the official.

Next year, efforts to resolve overdue payments owed to businesses will also be further advanced. Among other efforts, local governments will fulfill their responsibility accordingly and better use policies such as new local government special bonds and strive to speed up overdue payments being made to businesses, the official said.

Meanwhile, action will also be taken to standardize law enforcement related to businesses, including thoroughly investigating and dealing with various types of illegal activities and rectifying arbitrary fees and other penalties for businesses in order to effectively safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of private enterprises and entrepreneurs, according to the official.

The Central Economic Work Conference said that a law on private sector promotion will be enacted in 2025. In October, China released a draft of the law for public input. The draft includes provisions on ensuring private businesses' fair participation and competition in the market, improving the investment and financing environment for these businesses, and supporting their technological innovations.

The arrangements made at the conference for economic work for 2025 are very significant in further boosting development confidence and stabilizing market expectations, Qi Xiangdong, a member of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and chairman of Qi An Xin Technology Group, told the Global Times.

The law on private sector promotion has inspired strong confidence among private entrepreneurs. "This is an important milestone in promoting the development and growth of the private economy," Qi said.

In addition to the enactment of the law, major policy measures outlined at the conference, including macro policies, will also offer a great boost for the private sector, which is an important part of the Chinese economy, according to Li Chang'an, a professor at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing.

"Major economic policies outlined at the conference for next year, including the call for a more proactive fiscal policy and moderately loose monetary policy and various efforts to boost domestic demand, will further improve confidence and stimulate the vitality of the private sector," Li told the Global Times on Monday.

The official from the Office of the Central Committee for Financial and Economic Affairs also said in the report on Monday that various measures will be taken to boost investment, including efforts to stabilize policy expectations and development confidence of private enterprises and effectively simulate the vitality of private investment.

"The role of the private economy in the process of Chinese modernization is very important. In recent years, the Communist Party of China Central Committee has launched a series of major measures to support the development of the private economy, and the policy effects of these policies are playing a positive role," the official said, pointing to, among other data, a 6.3-percent growth in private investment, excluding investment in real estate, in the first 10 months of 2024.