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Shanghai has unveiled a new strategic plan aimed at fostering a world-class business environment. This marks the ninth consecutive year the city has introduced an action plan dedicated to this goal, encompassing 26 specific tasks and initiatives across four vital sectors: government services, market competition, industrial development, and social governance.
The release took place during a meeting attended by representatives from over 100 local and international companies, business associations, and professional service organizations, along with prominent city officials, district leaders, and heads of major industrial parks.
Mayor Gong Zheng emphasized that these 26 tasks must be coordinated effectively, highlighting that their execution will reflect Shanghai’s dedication to supporting high-quality growth among all business sectors and maintaining steady economic momentum.
He urged the full utilization of the “3+1 mechanism,” a framework involving economic coordination, investment promotion, enterprise support, district and sub-district collaboration, and foreign trade stabilization efforts.
The city’s top official also underscored the importance of enhancing the overall business environment to foster sustainable development, instilling confidence in the market, and setting positive social expectations. This strategy aims to attract leading Chinese and international corporations and talent, energizing the push toward high-quality growth and supporting the objectives outlined in the upcoming Five-Year Plan (2026-2030).
In terms of government services, Shanghai plans to advance intelligent automation for routine administrative tasks, ensuring all policies benefitting businesses are accessible via a unified digital platform. Efforts will also focus on improving support for foreign companies operating within the Eastern Hub International Business Cooperation Zone and expanding the capabilities of the Easy Go platform designed for foreign personnel. Additionally, a comprehensive citywide service platform will be developed to assist local companies in their global expansion, alongside broadening the scope of the outbound data negative list.
Regarding market competition, the city intends to establish a fair competition review system, reinforce antitrust laws, and tighten regulations on unfair practices. It also commits to reducing on-site inspections for trustworthy companies with low risk profiles. Furthermore, Shanghai aims to combat professional claim filing abuses, online rumors, extortion, and ensure timely payments from government agencies to businesses. Legal support and dispute resolution services will be enhanced to protect corporate interests.
For the first time, industrial ecology has been spotlighted within the action plan. Shanghai will simplify land approval procedures, reform integrated approval processes, and promote upgrades within vertical industrial parks. A shared financing platform for small and medium-sized enterprises will be introduced across the city to facilitate seamless loan renewals, while local street and town authorities will be empowered to better address business needs.
Last year, Shanghai implemented 58 reforms from its previous action plan to improve its business climate, earning recognition for adopting 22 global best practices according to the World Bank’s enterprise environment survey.
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