BEIJING Municipality plans to establish the “Beijing Service” brand to better boost a business-friendly environment in 2024, said the city’s mayor Yin Yong when delivering a government work report at the annual session of the Beijing Municipal People’s Congress on Sunday. Beijing will implement comprehensive measures to optimize the business environment and align with the World Bank’s new framework to assess the business environment in 2024, aiming at creating a world-class business environment characterized by market orientation, rule of law, convenience, and internationalization. The city will formulate standardized procedures for administrative licensing matters and deepen reforms, including “one integrated license” policy and “All-in-One-Go” government services. It will also advance comprehensive supervision through integrated approaches, increase the proportion of non-onsite supervision, and enhance a pilot program on digital market supervision. Beijing witnessed a 20.3% growth in newly established businesses in 2023, bringing to total number to over 2.11 million. Beijing has set economic targets for 2024, aiming for a year-on-year growth of approximately 5% in its regional gross domestic product (GDP), Yin said. The Chinese capital’s targeted economic indicators for 2024 also include maintaining the surveyed urban unemployment rate within 5% and ensuring the consumer price index (CPI) growth remains around 3%. Additionally, general public budget revenue is expected to increase by 5% year on year. Yin emphasized the city’s commitment to keeping resident income growth in sync with overall economic expansion. In 2023, Beijing’s GDP soared to nearly 4.4 trillion yuan (US$618.26 billion), showcasing a robust year-on-year growth of 5.25%, read the government work report. Among the major GDP contributors is the digital economy, contributing 42.9% to the regional GDP in 2023. “Beijing is striving to build itself into a global benchmark city for the digital economy,” said Yin. Official statistics unveiled during the legislative meeting highlighted Beijing’s prowess in digital infrastructure development. The city erected 30,000 new 5G base stations in 2023, securing the top national spot with 49 5G base stations per 10,000 people. Beyond the digital realm, Beijing is poised to shift its focus from post-pandemic recovery to sustained expansion, with plans to boost consumption potential. Beijing will deploy strategies such as the transformation of traditional business districts, the creation of international consumption experience zones, the stimulation of bulk consumption, and support for service consumption.(Xinhua) | 