China’s gold rush comes to Xi’s tariff-free paradise

THREE MONTHS AFTER China declared Hainan the world’s largest “free-trade port”, the tropical island off the country’s southeastern coast has become a shopping paradise for those who believe in the beauty of gold.

- SHULI REN

Best known for palm trees and beachfront resorts, the island has been marketed as a major gateway for what President Xi Jinping called the era of “opening up”. Beijing wants to show the world that China isn’t only a major exporter—the trade surplus notched a record $1.2 trillion last year—but is keen to welcome foreign imports. The free-trade label serves as a snub to the Trump 2.0 tariff policies to choke globalisation as we know it.

Hainan has been a duty-free shopping hub for years, but Beijing is taking a step further. Most goods can now enter with zero tariffs. The island’s 10 million residents are granted duty-free shopping of 10,000 yuan ($1,450) per year. Visitors from mainland China (and the smaller number of foreigners), while still subject to a 100,000-yuan annual quota, have more items to choose from. In addition, goods processed in Hainan can be shipped to the mainland tariff-free, as long as the processing work results in a 30% value-add.