Shunyi opening-up shifts, lifts economy

Amid Beijing's Shunyi district's shift from an agriculture-driven economic model to a more advanced one, the service industry contributed 57.6 percent to the area's GDP last year, up 5.3 percentage points year-on-year, local officials said.

Yang Pengbo, deputy director of the commerce committee of Shunyi, said the district has been determined to increase the service industry's contribution to the area's economy to 65 percent by 2018. It received approval to construct a demonstration district for the pilot program of opening-up the service sector in May 2016.

The district now plans to develop an airport economy, intelligent new energy cars and creative culture industries, he added.

Shunyi has functioned as Beijing's cross-border express delivery business center since the capital airport was first established there.

Wang Wenzheng, general manager of Exerion (Beijing) International Fine Arts Logistics, said artwork collected from around the world can be stored in its warehouses and transported internationally after auction, without import duty or value-added tax.

Shunyi's cross-border e-commerce goods delivery center has combined customs and quarantine processes to decrease clearing time from one or two days to one or two hours, according to Li Hongwei, project manager of the center.

HuHu Studios, the second-largest animation company in New Zealand, established a joint venture to bring its special effects technology to China at Shunyi district's international cultural trade base in March.

Trevor Yaxley, CEO of HuHu Studios said they would consider Chinese cultural elements and the acceptance of Chinese audiences in its cooperation projects.

Now they are working on a new cartoon movie with local college students, telling the story of baby animals learning to grow up and the importance of family relationships, he said.

Yang said 80 percent of the strategies relating to the opening-up of the service industry are now completed.

"We expect to promote the equipment manufacturing industry, covering automobiles and energy conservation industries as the next step, with enhanced links with Tianjin and North China's Hebei province," he said.

For foreigners who live or work in the district, the time taken to apply for a residence permit has been reduced from 180 working days to 90, Fan Zheng, an official said at the Shunyi immigration service hall that opened on May 3.

chenmeiling@chinadaiy.com.cn

(China Daily 06/02/2017 page5)