Photo: Ma Tong/GT

Diplomats see vast potential for trade and investment cooperation across multiple sectors in South China's Hainan Province as the island is accelerating its high-level opening-up on all fronts, following the conclusion of the 4th China International Consumer Products Expo and Boao Forum for Asia.

"We firmly believe that the potential for China-Belarus economic and trade cooperation is abundant," Andrei Povov, consul general of the Consulate General of the Republic of Belarus in Guangzhou, told the Global Times on Tuesday during an industrial tour of foreign diplomats to Hainan, noting that the two countries are aiming to "achieve an innovation-driven model of economic progress."

The remarks came after a foreign investment policy briefing held by the Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP), which is speeding up preparations for independent customs operations in 2025 while taking steps to promote high-quality development, seeking its position at the forefront of China's high-level opening-up.

"Hainan's free trade policies represent an array of opportunities. China and Belarus are working in several directions together, such as food processing, medical substances and education projects," Povov said.

Feng Fei, Party secretary of the Hainan Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China, said on Monday during a meeting with the visiting diplomats that Hainan is making multiple efforts to achieve the highest level of opening-up through promoting a policy system featuring "facilitation and liberalization for the flow of trade, investment, cross-border capital, personnel and transportation, and the secure and orderly flow of data".

The province has designated preparations for independent customs throughout the island by the end of 2025 as the local government's top priority in 2024. "We are accelerating stress tests, building intelligent regulatory platforms, and exploring new regulatory models," Fend said.

After its implementation, Hainan FTP will expect to see greater strides in foreign trade and investments, aligning seamlessly with international trade standards and fostering closer integration with the extensive mainland Chinese market, Fend added.

Located at the intersection of the two most dynamic markets - China and ASEAN -  Hainan is becoming a pivotal hub for the two sides' cooperation with its complete policy package of further opening-up, Parulian George Andreas Silalahi, minister of the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in China, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

China's strategy of high-level opening-up is mutually beneficial, providing vast potential for deepening China-Indonesia collaboration across diverse economic sectors, the minister said, noting that "we have common interests and ample opportunities to trade and invest in sectors such as tourism, education, medical among others."

Thanks to its further opening-up, many of the province's socioeconomic indicators outpaced national averages. In the first quarter of this year, Hainan's foreign trade reached 64.23 billion yuan ($8.86 billion), an increase of 11.3 percent, 6.3 percentage points faster than the overall national growth rate.

Moreover, foreign investment in Hainan has been on the rise, with the number of newly established foreign-funded enterprises growing at an average annual rate of 65 percent since 2018. There are a total of 6,543 foreign-funded enterprises operating in the province.

As another example of the province's expanding opening-up, the 4th China International Consumer Products Expo was held in Haikou, the capital city of Hainan from April 13 to 18. A total of 4,019 consumer brands from 71 countries and regions participated in the exhibition, highlighting the vitality of China's market and the island's investment potential.

Hainan's steady trade growth came after the country decided to develop the whole island into a pilot free trade zone five years ago, gradually exploring and steadily promoting the establishment of an FTP with Chinese characteristics.

On Monday, the province held an investment policy briefing in Haikou, with more than 20 ambassadors, consuls general and other diplomats from countries including Madagascar, Finland, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Belarus and Germany attending, as the kick-off meeting for a five-day industrial tour of foreign diplomats to Hainan in 2024.