Jiangsu Free-Trade Zone
Jiangsu Free-Trade Zone, or China Pilot Free Trade Zone is a free trade zone located in Jiangsu Province, China, covering parts of Nanjing, Suzhou, and Lianyungang. It includes three main areas: the Nanjing Area, the Suzhou Area, and the Lianyungang Area, with a total area of 119.97 square kilometers.
History
In September 2013, Jiangsu proposed two plans to establish a free trade zone. The first plan centered on the Suzhou Industrial Park Comprehensive Bonded Zone, integrating the customs special supervision areas in the five southern Jiangsu cities to build the free trade zone. The second plan also focused on the Suzhou Industrial Park bonded zone but aimed to consolidate surrounding customs special supervision areas. However, the State Council rejected these proposals. Subsequent proposals such as “Suzhou + Wuxi,” “Suzhou + Nantong,” “Suzhou High-tech Zone + Kunshan + Suzhou Industrial Park,” and “Suzhou + Lianyungang” were also rejected.After the approval of the Nanjing Jiangbei New Area as a national-level new area in June 2015, the Jiangbei New Area proposed applying for free trade zone status in November 2016. In January 2019, Jiangsu again submitted a proposal to establish the free trade zone, with a team of dozens who revised the application documents hundreds of times. Around this time, Jiangsu officials publicly discussed the potential establishment of the Jiangsu FTZ in Nanjing. In February 2017, representatives from Lianyungang suggested including the Lianyungang Free Trade Port Area as a core area in the Jiangsu FTZ in the next batch of free trade zones, with a planned area of 120 square kilometers.
On August 26, 2019, the State Council officially approved the establishment of the China Pilot Free Trade Zone. On August 30, the China Pilot Free Trade Zone was formally launched in the Jiangbei New Area of Nanjing. Lou Qinjian, Secretary of the Jiangsu Provincial Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, and Wu Zhenglong, Governor of Jiangsu Province, collaboratively inaugurated the plaques for the China Pilot Free Trade Zone, along with the sub-zones of Nanjing, Suzhou, and Lianyungang. A project signing ceremony occurred on the same day. The administrative authorities of the Shanghai, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang Pilot Free Trade Zones executed the "Strategic Cooperation Framework Agreement for Coordinated Development of the Shanghai-Jiangsu-Zhejiang Pilot Free Trade Zones." The Jiangsu Provincial Department of Commerce entered into cooperation agreements with six institutions, including the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation affiliated with the Ministry of Commerce, to utilize think tank resources and collaboratively advance research on pilot free trade zones.
On August 30, 2022, the Jiangsu provincial government held a press conference marking the third anniversary of the Jiangsu FTZ.