Open Door Policy: What China is betting on
China's policy of openness aims to solidify the country's position as the world's second-largest economy, Kazinform News Agency correspondent reports.

This approach has attracted foreign companies like the German automotive giant Volkswagen Group, which, facing growing competition from Chinese automakers, has chosen to take advantage of China’s investor-friendly environment.
Focus on reforms and openness
Since joining the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001, China’s foreign trade volume has increased nearly 12-fold, from $509 billion to $6.16 trillion last year. The trade balance surplus reached a record $992.1 billion in 2024, while GDP exceeded $18 trillion.
China's Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, stated that the country’s reforms and openness have reached a new level.
“Thanks to reforms and openness, China has made great strides in keeping pace with the times over the past decades. To pave a new path toward modernization, we continue to rely on reforms and openness. They are the driving force behind China’s economy,” emphasized the Vice Premier.
Addressing the topic of foreign investments, Ding Xuexiang highlighted that a pilot free trade zone was established in Shanghai in 2013, along with the release of the country’s first negative list for foreign investments. At the time, the list included 190 items, but this number has since been reduced to just 27. Last year, China removed all restrictions on foreign investments in the manufacturing sector and introduced a negative list system for cross-border trade in services.
On the topic of foreign trade, the Vice Premier clarified that China “does not seek a trade surplus” but instead aims to “import more competitive, high-quality goods and services to promote balanced trade.” He noted that for the past seven years, China has hosted the China International Import Expo in Shanghai and has long held the position of the world’s second-largest importer.
“As for business conditions, we understand that issues such as intellectual property protection in China, equal participation in public procurement, cross-border data exchange, access to production resources, qualification approval, and standard-setting are of great interest to multinational corporations. In these areas, we are continuously improving relevant institutions and policies. These matters are equally important for both domestic and foreign-invested enterprises, and our stance is clear: to ensure equal and fair treatment for all,” stated the Chinese Vice Premier.
Liu Huaqin, a professor at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation under the Ministry of Commerce, highlighted that China’s new openness policy offers significant opportunities for global economic development.
“China has substantially eased its visa-free transit policies, expanded unilateral visa-free entry for foreign nationals, and granted zero-tariff treatment for 100% of tariff items to all least developed countries with which it has diplomatic relations,” the expert noted.
Investor pool
China is also unilaterally expanding openness in sectors such as healthcare, telecommunications, financial services, and trade in services. According to the Ministry of Commerce, nearly 60,000 new foreign-invested enterprises were established in China in 2024, marking a 9.9% year-on-year increase.
For instance, French pharmaceutical company Sanofi SA is building a production facility in Beijing for biomedical projects, with an investment of €1 billion. Meanwhile, German automaker Volkswagen Group plans to invest approximately €2.5 billion to expand its manufacturing and innovation center in Hefei. Volkswagen aims to introduce over 30 fully electric vehicle models to the Chinese market by 2030, with production of the first model, developed in collaboration with XPeng, set to begin in 2026.
Additionally, a consortium consisting of Borouge (UAE), ADNOC (UAE), and Borealis (Austria) has partnered with a Chinese company to conduct a joint feasibility study for a greenfield project. This initiative involves constructing a new complex in Fuzhou, Fujian Province, to produce 1.6 million tons of specialty polyolefins annually.
The German company Bayer Group has already invested 300 million yuan (approximately $42 million) in the construction of a new supply center in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, Eastern China. This facility will focus on the production and distribution of crop protection products.

Last year, the volume of foreign direct investment ultilized in mainland China totaled $115.2 billion, marking a 27.1% decrease compared to the previous year.
It is also noteworthy that, as of December 1, 2024, China introduced a zero-tariff regime for all goods imported from 33 African countries.
Open doors as part of globalization
China’s Ministry of Commerce plans to review and expand the list of industries encouraged for foreign investment in 2025.
“In the context of the global economic downturn, China’s policy of opening its economy to the world is of great importance in facilitating the recovery of the global economy,” says Liu Huaqin, a professor at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation under the Ministry of Commerce.
The professor believes that China’s open-door policy is paving the way for a new type of economic globalization.
“China plays a leading role in advancing the ‘green’ economy and digitalization. Its cutting-edge digital technologies have the potential to reduce the economic gap between countries and provide fresh momentum for global economic development,” she stated.
The expert notes that China’s emergence as the world’s second-largest economy is inextricably linked to its open-door policy. As a result, the country will continue to advance reforms through openness, leverage the advantages of its vast market, enhance its openness potential by expanding international cooperation, and build a higher-level open economic system.
According to Liu Huaqin, expanding openness can reduce trade and investment barriers, lower costs, increase economic and trade exchanges with other countries, create more business opportunities, and promote economic development worldwide.
“Chinese leaders often emphasize that the country’s open doors will not close; on the contrary, they will open wider and wider, and the conditions for doing business will continue to improve,” the expert stated.
China and Central Asia
The professor highlighted that China’s policy of expanding openness is also reflected in deepening cooperation with Central Asia. Following the first "Central Asia–China" summit held in Xi'an in May 2023, a list of agreements and initiatives was announced. These included commitments such as the ongoing simplification of trade procedures, the extension of the "express corridor" for customs clearance of agricultural products at all border crossings, enhancing the interconnectivity of "single window" systems in international trade, facilitating streamlined customs processes, and exploring the issuance of "Central Asia–China" business travel cards, among others.

China is also increasing imports of agricultural products from Central Asian countries and promoting the development of cross-border e-commerce in the region.
“The introduction of a visa-free regime between China and Kazakhstan has boosted tourism between the two countries, while the Khorgos International Center for Border Cooperation has established a new model of bilateral trade and economic interaction,” the professor noted.
According to data from China’s General Administration of Customs, trade turnover between China and Central Asian countries reached $89.4 billion in 2023, a 27.3% year-on-year increase. In 2024, this figure hit a record $94.8 billion, marking a 6.1% growth. Kazakhstan topped the list of trade partners with $43.82 billion, followed by Kyrgyzstan ($22.71 billion), Uzbekistan ($13.78 billion), Turkmenistan ($10.65 billion), and Tajikistan ($3.86 billion).
Li Xuan, Deputy Director of the Department of Commerce of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, noted that the total trade turnover of Xinjiang in 2024 reached approximately $60 billion, a 21.8% increase. Trade between Xinjiang and the five Central Asian countries accounted for 67.9% of the region’s total foreign trade volume.
Earlier it was reported that Kazakhstan-China mutual commodity turnover rose by 9% to 43.8 billion US dollars in 2024.