CGTN |27-Jun-2020 | By Zhou Minxi
The COVID-19 pandemic has devastated the tourism and retail sectors, as much of the world stayed home and airplanes sat idly for months. But in south China’s Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP), duty-free stores are ready to bring back the big-spending bargain hunters with the island positioned as an international tourism and consumption destination.
Despite being the country’s largest special economic zone since 1988, the southern island province, home to more than nine million people with an area of 35,000 square kilometers (13,500 square miles), is better known for its tropical beach resorts and in recent years, real estate.
In April 2018, China’s leadership announced that the country will support the development of an island-wide free trade zone in Hainan with promises of zero-tariff on imported goods, low taxes and relaxed visa procedures for foreigners. The overall plan for a “high-level FTP” with global influence by 2050 was unveiled on June 1.
Among key policies designed to facilitate freer flow of capital and goods cross-border is an independent customs regime on the island. Qualifying goods and items entering China through the FTP will be exempt from import duties, VAT and consumption tax. This will vastly expand the availability of international brands and bring cheaper imported goods closer to home for Chinese consumers.
In a push to reinvigorate consumer spending, the government has raised the purchasing allowance for duty-free items to 100,000 yuan per person, more than tripling the 30,000 yuan allowed since 2018. The list of offshore duty-free product categories will also be expanded by early July.
“In short, China wants to share the benefits of the Hainan Free Trade Port with the rest of the world and make Hainan feel like heaven for shopping,” said Ruslan Tulenov, supervisor at Hainan Provincial Bureau of International Economic Development.
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