Cuts in red tape to help businesses

Facing a challenging economic slowdown, the Chinese government pledged on Wednesday to cut red tape in the private sector and reduce government intervention to encourage business growth.

About 300 procedures subject to government approval, mostly in the areas of real economy, small and micro-businesses and private investment, will be removed, merged or devolved to a lower level of authority to avoid overregulation, according to a statement released after a State Council meeting.

It is the second time in a month that the State Council has addressed the development of the private sector at its executive meeting.