Report on the Work of the Government (full text)
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-03-15 10:42

4. Accelerating the reform of the financial system. This is an important task affecting the overall interests of reform and development. We will accelerate the reform of state-owned commercial banks by carrying forward the successful pilot program to turn them into stock companies. The reform of policy banks and other commercial banks will be carried forward. We will vigorously yet steadily develop financial institutions with different forms of ownership. We will continue working hard to implement the State Council's Guidelines for Promoting the Reform, Opening Up and Steady Growth of the Capital Market. We will strengthen the infrastructure of the capital market and formulate sound regulations for it to protect the legitimate rights and interests of investors, particularly non-government investors, thereby creating a favorable environment for its steady and sound development. We will deepen the reform of the insurance industry and standardize order in the insurance market. We will steadily deregulate interest rates to leave them to market forces, and reform the mechanism for setting the exchange rate for the Renminbi and keep it basically stable at a proper and balanced level. We will improve the system of financial oversight and management and strengthen and improve our financial oversight and management work.

5. Promoting reform of fiscal and tax systems and the investment system. We need to strengthen the public finance system and improve and standardize the system of transfer payments from the central government. We will improve fiscal systems at and below the provincial level. The VAT reform will be carefully carried out on a trial basis in selected areas, and a plan will be formulated for implementing the reform in all other areas. The mechanism for granting export tax rebates will be improved. Reform of the budget management system will be deepened. The government's decision on reforming the investment system will be fully carried out, and we will formulate methods for implementing it and improve the systems for examining and approving projects and keeping records. We will establish a system for regulating investment from all sectors of society that meets the needs of the new situation. We will standardize the scope and procedures for government investment, improve the monitoring system, and formulate a responsibility system for investments made by government bodies and state-owned enterprises and a system for assigning responsibility for bad investment decisions in order to eradicate the problem of no one being held responsible for them.

6. Strengthening the market system. We will energetically develop the market for factors of production. We will standardize and develop the equity exchange market. The reform of the distribution system will be continued, and modern distribution methods will be vigorously developed. Price reforms will be deepened to better balance price relationships. We will thoroughly rectify and standardize order in the market, focusing on continuing the work of cleaning up the markets for food and medicine, which have a direct bearing on people's health and safety. We will continue to rectify and standardize the agricultural equipment and supplies, construction and real estate markets. A campaign to protect intellectual property rights will be launched. We will severely crack down on pyramid schemes and all other types of fraudulent commercial activities, as well as economic crimes such as smuggling, tax evasion and fraud, and money laundering. We will accelerate the establishment of a credit system for the general public.

This year we are faced with many new situations as we open up the country to the outside world. Tariffs need to be reduced to the level we promised when China joined the WTO, most non-tariff measures need to be eliminated, and the service sector needs to be opened wider to foreign competition. We need to respond to these new situations to ensure success in opening up. First, we need to speed up improvement in the growth pattern of foreign trade. We will improve the export mix, promote upgrading of the processing trade and ensure continued growth of exports. We will continue to effectually import energy, important raw materials, key technologies and major equipment. We will reform the system of port management and simplify customs clearance procedures. We will handle international trade frictions and disputes properly. Second, we need to continue to utilize foreign capital energetically and rationally. We need to improve the performance of foreign capital and better integrate efforts to attract foreign investment with efforts to improve the country's industrial structure and technological level. We will encourage foreign investors to invest in new and high technology industries, modern services, modern agriculture and the central and western regions. We will keep the number of projects that consume excess quantities of resources and are highly polluting to a minimum. Third, we need to further implement the "go global" strategy. We will encourage qualified enterprises to invest and do business in other countries, give them more credit, insurance and foreign exchange support, and strengthen guidance and coordination for enterprises operating abroad. We will develop a sound system for managing and supervising state assets abroad. Fourth, we need to do all work for the transition period of our entry into the WTO promptly and well. We will continue to develop multilateral and bilateral economic relations and actively participate in regional economic cooperation.