The State Council's research on foreign trade policy emphasizes accelerating the progress of export tax rebates

On the 12th, Premier Wen Jiabao of the State Council presided over the executive meeting of the State Council to study and determine policies and measures to promote the steady growth of foreign trade. In support of the development of foreign trade, the meeting discussed and adopted the "Several Opinions on Promoting Stable Growth in Foreign Trade," and identified the following policy measures:

● Accelerate the progress of export tax rebates to ensure accurate and timely tax refunds.

● Expand the scale of financing, reduce financing costs, and support commercial banks in their efforts to expand trade financing for small and micro enterprises, and increase loans to qualified export companies.

● Expand the scale and coverage of export credit insurance, paying special attention to developing credit insurance for small and micro enterprises. Expand short-term insurance business and support SMEs in opening up international markets. Seriously implement the special arrangements for export financing insurance for large-scale complete sets of equipment.

● Improve trade facilitation. Simplify approval procedures, improve the efficiency of customs clearance, and reduce the cost of customs clearance. Under the premise of ensuring effective supervision, the scope of application for local declaration and port inspection and release will be relaxed to some Class B enterprises. Further reduce the statutory inspection and quarantine directory. Exemption from entry and exit inspection and quarantine fees for all statutory inspection and quarantine objects in the fourth quarter of 2012, and the reduced inspection and quarantine charges from 2013.

● Properly address trade frictions and safeguard the rights and interests of exporting enterprises. Implement import trade remedy to protect domestic industry safety.

● Actively expand imports, with emphasis on the import of advanced technology and equipment, key parts and components, and daily necessities that are closely related to the people, support enterprise technological transformation, and promote trade balance.

● Optimize the layout of the international market for foreign trade, and support enterprises in developing emerging markets such as Africa, Latin America, Southeast Asia, and Central and Eastern Europe.

● Optimize the layout of foreign trade and domestic regions, expand the opening up of the central and western regions, and promote the development of border provinces and regions in economic and trade cooperation with neighboring countries.

■ Counterfeit policy

Infringement cases included in the scope of government information disclosure

In order to increase efforts to crack down on infringement and counterfeiting, the State Council's executive meeting also discussed and adopted the "Opinions on Combating Administrative Enforcement with Criminal Justice in the Work of Cracking down on Infringement of Intellectual Property Rights and the Production and Sales of Counterfeit and Inferior Goods."

The Opinions stipulate that in the process of investigating violations of infringements, counterfeiting, and infringements according to law, if any illegal facts are suspected of constituting a crime and criminal responsibility needs to be investigated, they should be referred to the public security organs at the same level.

The Opinions stipulate that when an administrative law enforcement agency discovers and accepts reports and complaints, it discovers that infringements, counterfeiting, and infringements are clearly suspected of committing a crime. They must immediately report in writing to the public security organs at the same level. Public security organs shall immediately investigate after receiving the notification.

The "Opinions" also require administrative law enforcement agencies to include infringement and counterfeiting cases in the scope of government information disclosure and accept social supervision.

■ Expert analysis

Eight Policies Stressing Tax Refunds and Protecting Rights

Since the beginning of this year, the growth rate of China’s foreign trade has experienced a certain degree of fluctuation. In particular, after July, the export growth rate has sharply declined. The fundamental reason is that external effective demand has continued to shrink.

The industry believes that the eight policy measures cover the aspects of export tax rebates, export credit insurance, and trade financing that foreign trade companies are most concerned about. If they can be implemented as soon as possible, they will play a boosting role in the development of foreign trade.

Specifically, accelerating the progress of export tax rebates and expanding the scale of financing can effectively reduce the pressure on capital flow of enterprises; Expanding the scale and coverage of export credit insurance is a targeted “targeting” of current small and micro enterprises for fear of market risk. The phenomenon of not dares to pick up; lowering the cost of customs clearance is aimed at the rapid decline in the profits of foreign trade companies and aims to help companies to reduce their burdens; properly responding to trade frictions and implementing import trade remedies is a backdrop for China’s foreign trade under the current warming of trade protectionism. Develop the need to create a good environment.