China adds 7 new free trade zones

Chinese authorities have decided to set up seven new free trade zones across the country, bringing the total number to 11, as China looks to replicate the success of previous trials.

The new FTZs will be in Liaoning, Zhejiang, Henan, Hubei, Sichuan and Shaanxi provinces as well as Chongqing municipality, according to Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng.

The expansion comes three years after the launch of China's first free trade zone, in Shanghai, to test a broad range of economic reforms, including more openness to foreign investment and fewer restrictions on capital flows.