China turns Hainan into free-trade zone
Bangkok Post
|December 19, 2025
Move billed as 'major strategic decision'
China yesterday split off a Belgium-sized island with an economy comparable to a mid-ranked country from the mainland for customs processing, part of a bid to join a major trans-Pacific trade deal and establish a new Hong Kong-style commercial hub.
Officials hope that turning the southern province of Hainan into a duty-free zone will spur foreign investment, with goods that achieve at least 30% local value-added able to move on into the world's second-largest economy tariff-free. Foreign firms will also be able to operate in service sectors that are restricted on the mainland.
China is also seeking to boost its free-trade credentials to convince members of one of the world's largest free-trade deals, the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), that it can meet the bloc's high standards for trade and investment openness through pilot projects such as the Hainan Free Trade Port.
This story is from the December 19, 2025 edition of Bangkok Post.
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