On June 24, Shi Xiaolin, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Sichuan Provincial Committee and Governor of Sichuan Province, conducted an inspection tour on foreign trade and chaired a symposium. She emphasized the need to fully implement the decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, as well as the requirements of the CPC Sichuan Provincial Committee; remain confident, seize opportunities, and respond proactively to changes; give full play to Sichuan’s strengths in science and technology, industry, markets, and talent; make effective use of both domestic and international markets and resources; and, through coordinated efforts, stabilize the scale and optimize the structure of foreign trade while supporting foreign-invested and foreign trade enterprises in becoming stronger and more competitive, thereby better serving and integrating into the overall national development strategy.
Shi visited foreign-invested enterprises and export service platforms in Shuangliu District and Chengdu Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone to learn about their investment plans, innovation and research and development, and the import and export of products. At the subsequent symposium, representatives of several key foreign trade enterprises briefed the meeting on their production and operations, the difficulties and challenges they faced, and their suggestions regarding foreign trade. Relevant provincial departments and local authorities analyzed the foreign trade situation and reported on their future work plans.
Shi expressed appreciation for the positive contributions made by foreign-invested and foreign trade enterprises to Sichuan’s development. She instructed relevant departments to carefully review and address enterprises’ concerns, strengthen regular communication between the government and businesses, provide detailed and effective support services, and actively help enterprises expand their markets and accelerate transformation and development.
Shi noted that Sichuan is currently making every effort to ensure a strong start to the 15th Five-Year Plan period. Stabilizing the scale and optimizing the structure of foreign trade are essential to supporting economic growth, employment stability, and high-quality development. Since the beginning of this year, the province’s overall foreign trade volume has remained generally stable. However, shortcomings remain in areas such as the structure of foreign trade, the cultivation of new growth drivers, and the development of market entities. Greater effort and more effective measures must therefore be taken to promote high-quality development, continuously improve the quality and efficiency of foreign trade, and further consolidate the foundation for steady and positive economic growth.
The provincial foreign trade service task force should operate efficiently, promptly and accurately analyze foreign trade trends, and assess changes in orders and potential shifts in production capacity among leading enterprises on a case-by-case basis. Enterprises should be supported in expanding existing projects, while additional projects should be closely followed up to facilitate their early implementation. Efforts should be made to encourage enterprises to retain more regional headquarters, functional institutions, and key production processes in Sichuan, expand imports and exports of raw materials and essential equipment, stabilize production capacity and orders, and jointly enhance the resilience of industrial and supply chains.
Sichuan should seize the current period of relative stability in foreign trade policies, make effective use of the trade-industry coordination mechanism, and further tap the export potential of sectors such as optical communications, biomedicine, and new energy vehicles. A group of highly competitive products should be developed in fields including optical modules, new displays, and robotics. Cooperation with leading platforms should be strengthened to promote new models and forms of business integrating cross-border e-commerce with industrial clusters. The scale of intermediate-goods trade should be expanded, new areas of growth should be actively explored, and the province’s industrial capacity and support for imports and exports should be continuously enhanced.
Focusing on airports, railway ports, highway ports, and waterway ports, Sichuan should continue improving infrastructure and network systems, make strong efforts to attract and cultivate high-quality market entities, and promote the deep integration of transport corridors, logistics networks, and digital networks. The province should accelerate improvements in port connectivity and hub operating efficiency, vigorously develop rail-road-water-air multimodal transportation, expand into diversified markets to the west, south, and east, and cultivate and strengthen the port-based economy.
Sichuan should fully implement the national policies aimed at stabilizing foreign trade, as well as the province’s 19 measures for further opening up. It should establish a comprehensive service platform for enterprises expanding overseas, make practical use of the Digital, Intelligent and Green Development Promotion Center and the Sichuan Easy Loan program, and deepen alignment with international rules and standards. Enterprises going global should be provided with full-life-cycle services covering policy coordination, foreign-related legal affairs, financial support, and market expansion. Enterprises should be organized to participate in high-level exhibitions, helping more small and medium-sized enterprises jointly expand overseas markets. They should also be guided to operate with integrity, comply with laws and regulations, and pursue mutually beneficial cooperation.
Provincial departments should strengthen follow-up supervision and supporting services for key regions, enterprises, and projects, promptly and effectively help enterprises resolve bottlenecks and difficulties in production and operations, and work together to promote the high-quality development of foreign trade.
Hu Yuankun, Secretary-General of the Sichuan Provincial Government, as well as officials from relevant provincial departments and Chengdu Municipality and representatives of foreign-invested and foreign trade enterprises, attended the meeting.
