According to the National Development and Reform Commission, some concerned departments will introduce further reforms to various service industries, such as the telecom industry, railway industry and civil aviation industry. They will relax restrictions on market access to promote competition and the reorganization of state-owned assets to diversify the source of investment.

High standards in market access have created difficulties for private enterprises when they enter the service industry. This is one of the major reasons that China's service industry is underdeveloped. Some departments will gradually establish an open, equal, standardized access system for the industries they are responsible for. They will make a greater effort to develop private enterprises in the service industry, and increase the proportion of private business in the service industry.

Henceforth, all service industries without explicit bans imposed by laws and regulations will be open to all social capital; all industries open to overseas investment will be open to domestic investment; and all industries open to local enterprises will be open to foreign investments.

Detailed policies will be formulated by relevant authorities. Some departments have already taken the first step, and will increase their efforts. The Ministry of Railways has released a program of reform for investment in the industry and financing system for the 11th Five-Year Plan period. It raised the basic idea of "government-led capital diversification and market-oriented operation" to establish a new pattern in which investment and property rights are diversified. As of the end of last year, there were five privately-owned airlines and six joint-venture airline companies in the civil aviation industry.

In the meantime, in accordance with requirements for the strategic adjustment of the distribution of the state-owned economy, some departments will centralize the state-owned capital in the service industry to provide important public goods and services.

By People's Daily Online