Singapore investors and services suppliers will enjoy more liberal and transparent rules to invest in and trade with China. - ST FILE
SINGAPORE: China and Singapore have upgraded a 15-year-old free trade deal to further open up their markets to investors and services suppliers on both sides, and expand cooperation in telecom services, said Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI).
The China-Singapore Free Trade Agreement’s (CSFTA) Further Upgrade Protocol, which entered into force on Dec 31, 2024, includes a recently updated edition of a “negative list” of Chinese industries in which foreigners are not allowed to invest.
MTI said the upgraded CSFTA, with the new and shorter negative list, will allow Singapore businesses greater access to China’s services sectors.
Additionally, Singapore investors will no longer be subject to limits on equity, or shareholding in a company, in more than 20 sectors such as construction and related engineering services; retail and wholesale; architectural and urban planning services; technical testing and analysis services; and renting and leasing.
Singapore investors and services suppliers will also enjoy more liberal and transparent rules to invest in and trade with China.
That was made possible by including new rules in the FTA that now prohibit nationality based discrimination when entering the Chinese market for the first time, and performance requirements, such as local content and technology transfer requirements.
The new rules also forego nationality requirements on the appointment of senior management and board of directors.
A new telecommunications services chapter was also introduced in the FTA that provides clearer rules and enhanced transparency for regulatory processes. The new chapter will also facilitate industry collaboration for innovation and development, said MTI.
The CSFTA was China’s first comprehensive bilateral FTA with an Asian country when it entered into force on Jan 1, 2009. The agreement has since been upgraded twice, in 2011 and 2019. Negotiations on the CSFTA’s latest upgrade started in 2020.
It is also the first time that China has completed the negotiation of upgrading an FTA with its new negative list.
Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong, who is also Minister for Trade and Industry, said in a social media post: “Singapore and China share a longstanding, strong bilateral relationship and the Further Upgrade Protocol is a reflection of our commitment to further advancing our economic cooperation.”
Gan signed the protocol with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao at the 19th meeting of the Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation in Tianjin, China, in December 2023.
Added Gan: “I encourage more businesses to utilise the CSFTA, and I look forward to working with my Chinese counterparts to strengthen our partnerships for the benefit of our businesses and our people.”
China has been Singapore’s top merchandise trading partner since 2013. It has also been Singapore’s top investment destination since 2007. - The Straits Times/ANN
