CBN丨China supports free trade, efforts needed to avoid “high friction, low trust”: PBOC governor

Hi everyone. I’m Stephanie LI.

Coming up on today’s program

• China’s central bank governor warned of the world veering towards “high friction, low trust” in Washington meeting;
• Commerce ministry met with foreign firms to discuss US tariff impact.

Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours

China will persist in opening up to the outside world, firmly support the rules of free trade and multilateral trading system, promote inclusive economic globalization while safeguarding global economic and financial stability, Governor of the People's Bank of China Pan Gongsheng said on Wednesday during the G20 finance ministers and central bank governors meeting in Washington, CCTV reported today.

Pan said the global economy is grappling with heightened uncertainty as increasing economic fragmentation and escalating trade tensions disrupt industrial and supply chains, fuel financial market volatility and undermine growth momentum. He also called for enhanced international cooperation to prevent the global economy from veering toward a trajectory of high friction and low trust.

Trade and tariff wars yield no winners, and unilateralism and protectionism offer no viable path forward, serving the interests of no one, Pan added.

Meanwhile, China’s Ministry of Commerce vowed to further expand opening-up and urging firms to jointly defeat unilateralism and protectionism.

Ling Ji, vice minister of commerce and deputy China international trade representative, chaired a roundtable with foreign-invested enterprises on Wednesday to discuss the impact of US tariff hikes on their operations and investment in China.

The meeting, hosted by the China Association of Enterprises with Foreign Investment, was attended by representatives from over 80 foreign-funded enterprises and foreign chambers of commerce in China

The US' unilateralism and bullying behavior of abusing tariffs have drawn strong opposition from the international community, severely undermining the rules-based multilateral trading system and international economic order, disrupting global industrial and supply chains, and harming businesses worldwide, including those in China, Ling noted.

The official called on foreign-invested enterprises to voice their rational opinions, strengthen their confidence, overcome difficulties, turn crises into opportunities, and jointly defeat unilateralism and protectionism.

"China will continue to expand high-level opening-up, protect the lawful rights and interests of foreign-invested enterprises, and take more proactive steps to help address their operational challenges," Ling said.

Representatives from participating companies expressed their willingness to continue investing in China, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, and tackle challenges together, according to the ministry’s statement on Thursday.

• China has just sent off its Shenzhou-20 crewed spacecraft to its space station from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China. Chinese astronauts Chen Dong, Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie carry out the mission.

GBA express

• Hong Kong and Zhejiang province on Thursday inked a landmark agreement outlining 51 joint projects across 13 strategic sectors, according to Hong Kong’s Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu. Part of a new cooperation mechanism between the two regions, the memorandum of understanding spans key areas including Belt and Road cooperation, finance, investment, aviation, trade, and sci-tech innovation. It was finalized at the first-ever Zhejiang-Hong Kong Cooperation Conference. The Hong Kong delegation led by the CE visited six leading Chinese AI startups in Hangzhou, including DeepSeek, Unitree Robotics, and Game Science, to explore their developments and innovations in the fields of LLM, humanoid robots, AI, and brain-machine interface.
• Hong Kong invested nearly 5,900 new enterprises in Shenzhen last year, according to a senior official of Shenzhen. During the “Opportunities in the Greater Bay Area” thematic interview event on Wednesday, the official highlighted that last year, Qianhai’s GDP reached 300.88 billion yuan, reflecting an 8.6 percent year-on-year growth and underscoring its active role in advancing the development of the GBA.

Industry and company news

• China released a new version of its market access negative list, reducing the number of items to 106 from 117, the National Development and Reform Commission announced today. The update reflects efforts to streamline market entry and expand access across sectors.
• China today launched a larger and earlier-than-expected first batch of special treasury bonds for this year, totaling 286 billion yuan, which accounts for 16 percent of the annual quota, according to the Ministry of Finance. This batch was issued more than three weeks earlier than last year’s and represents a significant increase from the 40 billion yuan issued in the first round of 2024.
• China imported 65,700 tons of LNG from the US in February, down by 128,500 tons from January, after it imposed a 15 percent retaliatory tariff on US-produced LNG on Feb. 10, media reported. China has stopped importing LNG from the US in March.
• Seventeen countries and international organizations, as well as over 50 international research institutions, have joined China’s International Lunar Research Station to cooperate in lunar explorations, said an official at the China National Space Administration.
• Chinese tech giant Huawei’s investment arm has reportedly issued 4 billion yuan worth of ultra-short-term bonds. The bonds of subsidiary Huawei Investment and Holding have a maturity of 248 days, at an interest rate of 1.59 percent, media reported.
• New Oriental has started using AI tools to empower the education process, but it has no plan to develop its own LLM, CFO Yang Zhihui said during an earnings conference call. The Chinese edtech firm saw its revenue fall 2 percent to USD1.2 billion in the third fiscal quarter from a year earlier.
• FAW Group yesterday unveiled its first flying car under the Hongqi brand. With a flight range of more than 200 km, the flying car is scheduled to make its maiden flight later this year.
• Xiaohongshu today notified employees that they will no loner be required to work every other Saturday from May 1, media reported. Moreover, the Chinese lifestyle platform will stop cash or option-based competition.

Asia-Pacific highlights

• Electric vehicles are gaining ground in Indonesia, industry participants said. Moeldoko, general chairman of the Electric Vehicle Industry Association (PERIKLINDO), said about 130 brands of electric passenger automobiles, motorcycles and commercial vehicles will be displayed at Electric Vehicle Show 2025, an annual trade expo to be held April 29 to May 5 in the capital city of Jakarta. That number is significantly higher than the 82 brands exhibited last year. He said this shows the growing demand for EVs in Indonesia. Some of the world's biggest EV brands like China's BYD and Wuling, South Korea's Hyundai, and Germany's BMW will be showcased. Indonesia is the biggest automotive market in Southeast Asia, with total car sales hitting over 860,000 units in 2024. It's also a growing market for EVs, with the government aiming to deploy 2 million electric cars and 12 million electric two-wheelers by 2030.

Executive Editor: Sonia YU

Editor: LI Yanxia

Host: Stephanie LI

Writer: Stephanie LI

Sound Editor: Stephanie LI

Graphic Designer: ZHENG Wenjing, LIAO Yuanni

Produced by 21st Century Business Herald Dept. of Overseas News.

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