Transcript of Premier Li Keqiang's meeting with Chinese and foreign business representatives at the Ninth Annual Meeting of the New Champions

(chinadaily.com.cn) Updated: 2015-09-10 09:17

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang speaks with global corporate leaders at the Annual Meeting of the New Champions of the World Economic Forum in Dalian, Liaoning province on September 9, 2015. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Li Keqiang: On the whole, there has been no change in China's overall policy on FDI. But in specific areas, there have been new steps taken or new measures introduced. These steps have opened more areas to foreign investors and will help China attract more foreign investment. For example, the number of items where restrictions were imposed on foreign investment access has been slashed by 50 percent. We are also taking steps to facilitate foreign investment. We have replaced past practice of comprehensive review and approval with the practice of record keeping. The number of items requiring government approval only accounts for 5 percent of the total. We are promoting a management model based on pre-establishment national treatment and a negative list approach. We are conducting BIT reviews with the United States and the European Union, and FTA negotiations with many countries. Foreign investment will be able to get into more areas in an easier way in China. We are also becoming more capable of attracting foreign direct investment. With global foreign investment in decline, FDI flowing into China still grew by 7.7 percentin the first half of this year.

In the meantime, we are pursuing innovation-driven development and encouraging mass entrepreneurship and innovation. This requires that we better protect intellectual property rights and ensure that there is a level-playing field for all market entities.All foreign invested companies registered in China will be treated as equals as their Chinese counterparts, be they joint ventures or solely owned foreign companies. But don't get me wrong: this does not mean that foreign companies which are not registered in China will not have their intellectual property protected in China. Otherwise, it is against not only Chinese laws but also internationally accepted practices.

Thank you.

Feike Sijbesma, Chairman and CEO of DSM: The Chinese government in recent period has shown strong resolve to address climate change and fight pollution. We hope step by step Beijing will get cleaner air. My question is what are the challenges China is facing in addressing climate change and pollution? And while addressing that, can you maintain your economic growth? Or is pollution a precondition for maintaining economic growth?

Li Keqiang: As we both have only limited time, allow me to give a brief answer to your question. The biggest challenge China faces in controlling pollution is that China is still a large developing country, yet it needs to shift the growth model and assume due international responsibilities in tackling climate change. There is a certain conflict of interests, and we need to strike a balance between the two. Not long ago, China announced its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution. China faces tremendous pressure in meeting these goals and will have to make enormous efforts. However, now that we have made those commitments, we will deliver on our commitment with concrete actions.

The Chinese government is taking steps to advance ecological conservation.In particular, we are intensifying efforts to save energy, cut emissions and control pollution. In the first half of this year, we managed to bring down per unit GDP energy consumption by 5.9 percent. We will continue to shift the growth model and promote green development. As China steps up efforts in environmental protection, the growth speed may have been affected. This may have caused concerns that the economy is slowing down and the real economy is being affected. We are working hard to foster green and energy-efficient industries that can be new drivers of growth, such as"Internet plus" and other new business models and industries. But again this needs a process.

Thank you.