China must improve transparency for foreign businesses: US business group
'Substantial problems' remain in rule of law, market access, standards, and intellectual property rights, says American Chamber of Commerce in China
China is being urged to press ahead with reforms to create a more transparent and fair environment for foreign businesses in industries including agriculture, banking, and information technology, according to the 2015 White Paper issued by the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in China.
Despite the improvements made, “substantial problems” have remained in four policy priority areas: rule of law, market access, standards, and intellectual property rights, the business group said on Tuesday at a press briefing in Beijing.
“Non-transparent, unclear, and inconsistent rule-making was identified by 65 per cent of our members as limiting their ability and willingness to invest in China, and has remained a top challenge to business for the last four years in a row,” AmCham said.
James Zimmerman, the group’s China chairman, said the recommendations had been submitted to both the Chinese and US governments.
China’s rule-making about Information and Communications Technology (ICT), for example, which is “by some measures the largest single category of US exports to China” and a key issue in the US-China Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) negotiations, had lacked transparency, AmCham officials said.
While China made its bank-technology rules, no input was solicited from the US side, which was a leader in the sector, the group said.
