Workers make stuffed toys at a factory in Guanyun, East China's Jiangsu Province, on May 29, 2022, ahead of Children's Day. Guanyun produces about 13 million toys annually, which are exported to many countries and regions. The industry generates more than 2,000 job opportunities for local villagers. Photo: IC

China's State Council, China's cabinet, issued on Tuesday a wide-ranging package of policy guidelines aimed at boosting the country's manufacturing industry and the broad economy.

The new policy includes 33 administrative measures in six areas, including fiscal support, investment, consumption, food and energy security, and supply chain stability in an effort to stabilize the economy while maintaining effective epidemic control. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), a prime contributor to the economy, are the focus of the government's supportive policies.

The package, a detailed follow-up to the recent teleconference held by the State Council, came in response to the rising challenges posed by the resurgence of Covid19 and the Ukraine crisis, experts said.

Veteran Beijing-based economist Tian Yun said that, prior to the new policies announced Tuesday, multiple provinces and cities including Shanghai, Jiangsu and Jiangxi provinces had already worked out up their own plans for reigniting local economic recovery.

Tian remained positive for the resumption of work across the country in June after the domestic COVID-19 flare-ups had been gradually brought under control.

While the epidemic has caused unprecedented hurdles for businesses, the new policy package further intensified the government efforts to get the economy back on track with pragmatic measures such as tax exemptions, government bonds and more investments to inject more vitality into the economy.

Among the 33 government measures, experts stressed the importance of the measures targeting improving the efficiency for financing for the capital market while stabilizing private sector investment.

The new policy stipulates that the issuance and use of local government special bonds should be accelerated and the scope of support should be expanded. One of the policy guidelines suggests the issuance of 3.45 trillion yuan of special bonds this year.

Moreover, private investments will be further prompted with a wider range of options available. The government will promote the implementation of 102 major projects in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), while encouraging private capital to participate in major national-level projects.

Tian said that the capital market will remain a focus for economic recovery as the international capital has begun to return since middle May, adding that China's capital supply is higher than the demand, which will aid enterprises such as technology companies to access financing.

As China's economic development is facing headwinds amid domestic COVID-19 flare-ups and a volatile international environment, the package of the government's supportive measures is expected to strengthen the development of "dual circulation" with the major focus on promoting domestic consumption and investment, Dong Dengxin, director of the Finance and Securities Institute of the Wuhan University of Science and Technology, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

The policy calls for accelerating investment in transportation infrastructure, including rural road construction and renovation. Specifically, 30,000 kilometers of rural roads will be paved, and 3,000 risky bridges along rural roads will be rebuilt.

Global Times