Hainan free trade port moves to forefront of China's opening-up drive
海南自由贸易港成为中国对外开放中的重要前沿阵地
HAIKOU, June 21 (Xinhua) -- For Canadian visitor Stephanie Wing See Yau, the therapy experience at a care center in Bo'ao, a coastal city in China's southernmost island province of Hainan, felt more like "a vacation."
海口，6月21日（新华社）对于加拿大游客Stephanie Wing See Yau而言，在中国最南端岛屿省海南省沿海城市博鳌的一家护理中心的治疗经历感觉更像是“一次度假”。
"This place is top-notch. They cater to so many aspects of wellness, not just physical, but mental too," she told Xinhua during her stay in the Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone, which hosts over 30 top-tier domestic and international medical institutions.
她在博鳌乐城国际医疗旅游先行区逗留期间告诉新华社记者：“这个地方非常出色。他们覆盖了很多健康方面的服务，不仅仅是身体上的，还有精神上的。”博鳌乐城国际医疗旅游先行区拥有30多家国内顶尖及国际医疗机构。
Thanks to special policy support, the pilot zone has introduced 485 cutting-edge medicines and medical devices that are licensed abroad but not yet available in the domestic market. The policy has benefited more than 130,000 patients, including individuals like Yau.
得益于特殊的政策支持，该试验区已引进485个国外已获得许可但国内市场尚未供应的前沿药品和医疗器械。该政策已惠及超过130,000名患者，包括像Yau先生这样的人。
Her four-day experience -- blending advanced health screenings, traditional therapies, tea ceremonies, and cultural immersion -- offers much more than just a chance to relax. It showcases a tangible outcome of a key move in China's opening-up strategy: the transformation of Hainan into a Free Trade Port (FTP).
她为期四天的经历——融合了先进的健康检查、传统疗法、茶道和文化沉浸——提供的不仅仅是一个放松的机会。它展示了中国开放战略关键举措的切实成果：海南转变为自由贸易港（FTP）。
As the Hainan FTP is set to begin independent customs operations by the end of the year, it is poised to become not only a tourist haven but also a pivotal gateway for China's opening-up drive.
随着海南FTP将于今年年底开始独立海关运作，它不仅将成为一个旅游天堂，也将成为中国对外开放的关键门户。
FRONTIER FOR FREE-FLOWING FACTORS
自由流动因素前沿
A central component of this transformation is the Lecheng medical tourism pilot zone. A total of 25 medical tourism routes have been rolled out to cater to a wide range of needs, including traditional Chinese medicine, chronic disease care, luxury diagnostics and cosmetic rehab, garnering popularity among visitors from countries such as Indonesia, Russia, Spain, and beyond.
这一转型的一个核心组成部分是乐城医疗旅游先行区。共推出25条医疗旅游线路，以满足广泛的需求，包括传统中医、慢性病护理、豪华诊断和美容康复，受到来自印度尼西亚、俄罗斯、西班牙等国家的游客的欢迎。
In 2024, the medical special zone attracted over 410,000 medical visitors, up 36.76 percent year on year.
2024年，医疗特区吸引医疗游客超过41万人次，同比增长36.76%。
Lecheng is only one part of Hainan's wider push for opening up. Beyond the medical sector, the province has been fast-tracking foreign access across sectors ranging from finance and education to communication and high-tech industries, as China aims to build an FTP with global top-tier trade standards.
乐城只是海南更大范围推进开放的一环。除了医疗领域，随着中国的目标是建立一个具有全球顶级贸易标准的FTP，该省一直在快速跟踪从金融和教育到通信和高科技产业的外国准入。
Hainan, supported by the country's vast domestic market and its strategic positioning, stands as a vital hub that connects the world's second-largest economy with global markets.
海南拥有广阔的国内市场和战略定位，是连接世界第二大经济体与全球市场的重要枢纽。
The FTP is gearing up to be "a pivotal gateway leading China's new era of opening-up," said Chi Fulin, head of the China Institute for Reform and Development.
中国改革发展研究院院长迟福林表示，FTP将成为“引领中国开放新时代的关键门户”。
With independent customs operations imminent, the FTP's policy framework, underpinned by features like zero tariffs, low tax rates, simplified tax systems and facilitated factor flows, has taken shape.
随着海关独立运作迫在眉睫，以零关税、低税率、简化税制和便利要素流动等特点为支撑的FTP政策框架已经形成。
For firms in Lecheng, a zero-tariff policy on medical imports has saved nearly 8.2 million yuan (about 1.14 million U.S. dollars) in duties since December 2024.
对于乐城企业来说，自2024年12月以来，医疗进口零关税政策已节省近820万元人民币（约合114万美元）的关税。
The start of independent customs operations will represent a concrete step toward building a major gateway for China's high-level opening-up, Chi said.
海关独立运作的开始将是建设中国高水平对外开放主要门户的具体一步。
INSTITUTIONAL OPENING-UP LURING FOREIGN CAPITAL
制度开放来吸引外资
As Hainan FTP has prioritized institutional integration and coordination across trade, finance and regulatory systems, experts believe this will create a powerful driving force for the development of the FTP and contribute to China's high-standard opening up strategy.
由于海南FTP优先考虑跨贸易、金融和监管体系的制度整合和协调，专家认为这将为FTP的发展创造强大动力，并为中国的高标准开放战略做出贡献。
Official data showed that so far, the province has rolled out a total of 158 institutional innovation cases. These reform measures include technology-empowered public tendering, one-stop business licensing, and a specialized IP zone to support the seed industry.
官方数据显示，截至目前，全省共推出制度创新案例158个。这些改革措施包括技术赋能的公开招标、一站式经营许可以及支持种业的专门知识产权专区。
Hainan FTP serves not only as a testing ground for free-flowing goods, services and data, but as a frontier for the innovation of regulations and mechanisms, said Zhou Xiaochuan, vice chairman of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA).
博鳌亚洲论坛（BFA）副理事长周小川表示，海南FTP不仅是商品、服务和数据自由流动的试验场，也是法规和机制创新的前沿。
With its optimized business environment, Hainan has emerged as a premier foreign investment destination, ranking among China's top performers. In 2024, the number of foreign-invested enterprises in Hainan rose 19.2 percent year on year, while its foreign direct investment volume climbed to the tenth spot nationally.
凭借优化的营商环境，海南已成为首选外商投资目的地，位居中国前列。2024年，海南外商投资企业数量同比增长19.2%，外商直接投资额攀升至全国第十位。
To date, Hainan has attracted investment from 158 countries and regions, while its economic openness ratio -- the ratio of total trade to GDP -- more than doubled from 17.3 percent in 2018 to 35 percent in 2024.
迄今为止，海南已吸引了158个国家和地区的投资，其经济开放度（贸易总额与GDP的比率）从2018年的17.3%增加到2024年的35%，翻了一番多。
High-profile events held in the province like the BFA, a premier platform advocating openness and multilateral cooperation, and the China International Consumer Products Expo, the largest consumer expo in the Asia-Pacific region, offer global investors dynamic gateways to observe the country's evolving openness agenda.
在该省举办的备受瞩目的活动，如倡导开放和多边合作的首要平台BFA和亚太地区最大的消费博览会中国国际消费品博览会，为全球投资者提供了观察中国不断发展的开放议程的动态门户。
DFS, the travel retail company of the luxury goods conglomerate LVMH, in 2024 sealed its largest single investment in 60 years to launch a landmark complex in Yalong Bay of Sanya, the well-known tropical resort city in Hainan. The project will merge luxury retail, hotels and entertainment, with the goal of building a top destination for luxury shopping and tourism.
奢侈品集团LVMH旗下的旅游零售公司DFS于2024年完成了60年来最大的单笔投资，在海南著名热带度假城市三亚亚龙湾推出了一座地标综合体。该项目将融合奢侈品零售、酒店和娱乐，目标是打造奢侈品购物和旅游的顶级目的地。
"Hainan FTP embodies China's commitment to high-standard openness," said Nancy Liu, president of DFS China.
“海南FTP体现了中国对高标准开放的承诺，”DFS中国区总裁Nancy Liu表示。
China's special economic zones, like Hainan FTP and the 21 pilot free trade zones, serve as pivotal engines for industrial transformation and opening up, Chi noted, highlighting their role as "growth accelerators for both regional and global economies."
中国的经济特区，比如海南自由贸易港以及21个自由贸易试验区，是产业转型和开放的关键引擎，强调了它们作为“地区和全球经济增长加速器”的作用。
When the independent customs operations begin, Hainan FTP will create key opportunities for international enterprises to access China's domestic market more efficiently, and play a greater role in enhancing market connectivity with global markets through service trade-focused regulatory alignment, he added.
他补充道，当独立海关开始运作开始时，海南FTP将为国际企业更有效地进入中国国内市场创造关键机会，并通过以服务贸易为重点的监管协调，加强全球市场的市场连通性。
