Ministry unveils plans to boost service sector

China is set to accelerate the opening of its services sector by expanding pilot programs in value-added telecommunications, biotechnology and wholly foreign-owned hospitals, while improving the negative list management system for cross-border services trade, the Ministry of Commerce said on Thursday.

China will also foster new drivers for services exports and enhance the global competitiveness of Chinese service providers, said He Yadong, spokesman for the ministry, at a news conference.

Last month, China rolled out a dedicated plan to promote its travel service exports and expand inbound consumption.

Data released by the ministry earlier this month showed that China's service exports grew 4.7 percent year-on-year to 442.49 billion yuan ($64.9 billion) in the first two months of the year.

On the domestic front, He noted that China will deepen pilot programs for new consumption formats, models and scenarios while promoting high-quality, diversified and convenient development in household services, accommodation and catering.

Alfred Yin, consumer sector leader at EY Greater China said that the focus of China's efforts to expand domestic demand is undergoing a shift—away from sheer scale and toward structural optimization, with service consumption emerging as a key engine of this transformation.

In early April, China rolled out new guidelines to boost service consumption across both established sectors such as elderly and child care, and emerging growth areas including inbound consumption and live performance.