Li Chenggang Addresses Rare Earth Controls and Green Development

    The State Council Information Office held a regular policy briefing on the morning of October 31, where Li Chenggang, Vice Minister of Commerce and China's International Trade Negotiator, along with officials from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the People's Bank of China, and the State Administration for Market Regulation, briefed reporters on efforts to expand green trade and answered questions.

    Li Chenggang Addresses Rare Earth Controls and Green Development

    At the briefing, a foreign journalist asked: How do China's recent rare earth export controls impact its green development?

    Li Chenggang, China's International Trade Negotiator and Vice Minister of Commerce, responded: “Export controls focus on security concerns, while green development is a philosophy. I understand your question centers on the relationship between security and development. In summary, ensuring security enables better development, and better development safeguards stronger security.”

    Li Chenggang: China's Green Trade Competitiveness Has Evolved from Selling Products to Providing Integrated Solutions

    The international market now values not only China's high-quality green products but also comprehensive solutions encompassing technology, services, and management. “For instance, Chinese companies exported green, low-carbon building materials to Saudi Arabia while providing complete energy-saving and carbon-reduction design and construction plans, helping build a 300,000-square-meter urban complex there.” Li Chenggang further illustrated that Chinese companies have delivered comprehensive rapid transit solutions—including new energy buses—to Tanzania, significantly improving urban commuting efficiency. He emphasized that these transformations vividly demonstrate China's green trade competitiveness. Looking ahead, China will continue aligning with global green and low-carbon development trends, further consolidating and enhancing its capacity to serve the world through green trade, and better sharing green and low-carbon achievements globally.

    Li Chenggang: China Will Continue Advancing Free Trade Negotiations, Vigorously Promote Two-Way Market Opening, and Reduce Non-Tariff Barriers

    The current green transition represents a significant development trend and growth engine for the global economy, as well as an emerging area of cooperation receiving high international attention. However, it also faces challenges from unilateralism and protectionism. Against this backdrop, China has consistently upheld an open and cooperative stance, actively participating in global green governance. We are focusing our efforts on three key areas to foster a favorable international environment for green trade development.

    First, we will engage deeply in the global governance of green trade. We will actively participate in discussions on green development-related issues at important international forums such as the G20, BRICS, APEC, and UNCTAD, proactively sharing China's practices and solutions. For instance, our proposed Framework Initiative on International Economic and Trade Cooperation for Digital Economy and Green Development has garnered enthusiastic responses from over 50 economies, becoming a widely welcomed public good. We will continue to promote its expansion and implementation. Meanwhile, we have faithfully fulfilled our tariff reduction commitments under the APEC Environmental Goods List, with tariffs on listed products reduced to below 5% as scheduled. Furthermore, we have incorporated green trade provisions into memoranda of understanding on deepening bilateral trade facilitation cooperation signed with countries such as South Africa.

    Second, we are continuously enhancing the “green content” of our high-standard free trade agreement network. In the FTAs we have signed, we have promoted the inclusion of trade and environment-related provisions. For example, the recently signed (on the 28th) China-ASEAN FTA 3.0 Upgrade Protocol establishes a dedicated chapter on the green economy and designates green trade as a priority area for cooperation. Furthermore, our FTAs or upgrade negotiations with Switzerland, South Korea, and Peru all include provisions on environmental protection and green industry cooperation. We will continue advancing FTA negotiations, vigorously promoting two-way market opening, reducing non-tariff barriers, elevating rule commitments, and fostering cooperation on standards and conformity assessment to create a fair, transparent, and predictable market environment for enterprises.

    Third, we will deepen domestic reforms to align with international green standards. We will conduct thorough research on international standards and trade rules, continuously align with them, advance further reforms in areas such as environmental standards, and promote the green transformation and upgrading of domestic industries. Currently, we are working with relevant departments to improve the green product standards, certification, and labeling system, accelerating mutual recognition of standards with major trading partners. This will help Chinese green products, technologies, and services better integrate into the global market.

    MIIT: Plans to increase the output value share of green factories at the national, provincial, and municipal levels to 40% by 2030

    Wang Peng, Director-General of the Department of Energy Conservation and Comprehensive Utilization at the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), stated at a press conference that MIIT will adhere to the concept of green development, vigorously promote green design and green manufacturing, and accelerate the green transformation and upgrading of the entire product lifecycle—from design and manufacturing to use, recycling, and reuse. By integrating “points, lines, and surfaces,” MIIT aims to build a green industrial ecosystem and lay a solid industrial foundation for expanding green trade.

    PBOC: Supports Global Issuance of Green Financial Products to Offer More Chinese Green Assets to Global Investors

    Wang Xin, Director of the Research Bureau at the People's Bank of China, stated at a State Council Information Office press conference on October 31 that the PBOC will focus on the following areas to support green service trade development: First, promote the application of green financial transition standards to support innovative financing methods such as credit, bonds, and equity; Second, encouraging financial institutions to increase financing support for productive service segments such as R&D design, logistics and operations, carbon emission certification and evaluation, and waste resource recycling, thereby lowering financing thresholds and costs for asset-light green service trade enterprises; Third, supporting the issuance of green financial products in global financial markets to provide global investors with more Chinese green assets, empowering the innovative development of green service trade through the two-way opening of the financial sector.