China vows more open economy, national treatment for foreign firms

BEIJING:

Chinese Premier Li Qiang pledged on Sunday to further open up ​the economy and fully implement national treatment for foreign ‌enterprises, as the country seeks to reassure the outside world amid rising global trade tensions.

China will focus on promoting high-quality development and continue to ​create a favourable business environment so that companies coming ​to China can develop with confidence and achieve great ⁠success, Li told the China Development Forum in Beijing, state ​media reported.

The annual two-day forum, which concludes on Monday, serves ​as a platform for Beijing to promote its economic trajectory and investment opportunities to foreign business leaders, Chinese officials, economists and academics.

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This year's gathering comes ​as the world's second-biggest economy faces rising tensions with major ​trading partners over last year's record $1.2 trillion trade surplus. It also precedes ‌an ⁠expected visit from US President Donald Trump, who postponed a trip originally planned for late March due to the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Senior executives attending include those from Apple, Samsung Electronics, Volkswagen, chipmaker Broadcom Inc, ​industrial conglomerate Siemens, ​chemical producer ⁠BASF and pharmaceuticals firm Novartis.

No Japanese company executives were listed on the guest list on the ​forum's website.

Li said China would import more high-quality ​goods ⁠and work with trading partners to promote balanced trade development and expand the global trade pie, describing China as committed to being ⁠a "cornerstone ​of certainty" and "harbour of stability" for the ​world economy.

He said opening up and technological progress were needed to create new ​markets.