BEIJING: The efforts to build a unified domestic market will help China’s industrial and supply chains as well as local and foreign enterprises operating in the country to better deal with challenges like the Covid-19 pandemic and geopolitical uncertainties, experts and company executives say.

       A unified domestic market that features efficient production, distribution, circulation and consumption of goods and services is also conducive to boosting the weight of China’s industrial and supply chains in the global arena, and bolstering the competitiveness of its manufacturing sector.

       That is the consensus among experts after China released a guideline in April on accelerating the establishment of a unified domestic market that is efficient, rules-based and open and encourages fair competition.

       Peng Bo, a researcher of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, said in recent years, notable progress had been made in building a unified market and promoting fair competition.

       However, there is still room for improvement in removing market segmentation and overcoming local protectionism.

       According to Peng, optimising the domestic market can help Chinese companies better compete in the global arena.

       “Currently, the industrial chains and global trade are shifting from being focused on efficiency to according priority to security. Building a unified domestic market will promote China’s economic growth, and help domestic companies better deal with economic and geopolitical headwinds and external uncertainties.”

       A unified domestic market will also enhance the international community’s ability to cope with risks.

       By getting through the blockades of domestic production and ensuring the smooth flow of goods, capital and information, there will be an increasing supply, which will greatly ease the pressure in the world’s industrial chain and supply chain, Peng said.

       Han Jianfei, deputy director of the Institute of Industrial Economics of CCID Consulting, a market research firm, said building a unified domestic market will attract global resources to China, and domestic and international markets will be better connected.

       Regulations and standards will become more compatible and China’s dual-circulation development paradigm will be enhanced.

       “Currently, the world’s most scarce resource is the market. Building a unified domestic market will entail efforts to further reduce the restrictions on foreign investment in some regions, which will help further expand opening-up and attract foreign investment,” Han said. — China Daily/ANN