Ministry Of Commerce Releases Implementation Opinions On Green Trade, Focusing On Import And Export Of Biodegradable Materials And Other Products

Provincial, autonomous region, and municipal people's governments; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the National Development and Reform Commission; the Ministry of Education; the Ministry of Science and Technology; the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology; the Ministry of Finance; the Ministry of Ecology and Environment; the Ministry of Transport; the People's Bank of China; the General Administration of Customs; the State Administration for Market Regulation; the National Financial Regulatory Administration; the National Bureau of Statistics; the China International Development Cooperation Agency; the National Energy Administration; the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade; the Export-Import Bank of China; and the China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation:

To actively expand green trade, promote trade optimization and upgrading, assist in achieving the goals of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, and accelerate the construction of a strong trading nation, the following opinions are hereby proposed with the approval of the State Council.

I. Enhancing the Green and Low-Carbon Development Capabilities of Foreign Trade Enterprises

1. Enhance the awareness of green and low-carbon development among foreign trade enterprises. Strengthen the training on green and low-carbon development concepts and policies for foreign trade enterprises, and promote the understanding of domestic and international laws, policies, and market dynamics. Publish best practice cases of green trade, promote experiences and practices, and facilitate mutual learning and reference among foreign trade enterprises. Guide leading foreign trade enterprises to integrate the concept of green and low-carbon development into all stages of the production and supply chain, driving the green and low-carbon transformation of the foreign trade supply chain and cultivating export enterprises for green and low-carbon products.

(2) Promote foreign trade enterprises to carry out green design and production. Support foreign trade enterprises in implementing green design and obtaining green product certification. Encourage foreign trade enterprises to actively use renewable energy and reduce the carbon emissions of foreign trade products through equipment upgrades, process modifications, and substitution with recycled raw materials. Encourage industry organizations, industrial internet platforms, and others to provide green and low-carbon services for the foreign trade supply chain.

(3) Accelerate the promotion of green and low-carbon logistics development. Promote the long-distance transportation of bulk foreign trade goods and containers by shifting from road to rail and from road to water. Guide foreign trade enterprises to use environmentally friendly packaging materials, reduce secondary packaging, and utilize logistics equipment and tools that have obtained green certification, such as reusable containers. Advance the international mutual recognition and sharing of standardized container equipment. Support shipping companies in building a green and low-carbon system, promoting the greening of the entire process of ship design, construction, and operation. Encourage the use of clean energy such as renewable synthetic fuels in transportation vehicles and ships for foreign trade cargo. Support the establishment of domestic biodiesel and marine fuel oil blending businesses in comprehensive bonded zones. Assist qualified regions in developing tax-free liquefied natural gas, biodiesel, green alcohol, and green ammonia refueling services for international navigation vessels.

(4) Enhance the capabilities of third-party green and low-carbon services. Build a public service platform for green trade. Encourage industry organizations, professional institutions, and foreign trade enterprises to develop carbon data management systems. Encourage third-party institutions to enhance their service capabilities by providing foreign trade enterprises with services such as product carbon footprint and organizational carbon footprint that are recognized by international green trade rules. Strengthen the supervision and management of third-party institutions.

2. Expand the import and export of green and low-carbon related products and technologies.

(V) Enhance the international competitiveness of green and low-carbon related products. Guide foreign trade enterprises to develop products made from recycled resources, recovered resources, biodegradable materials, and reusable waste. Promote trade in sustainable fuels such as green hydrogen. Explore the development of remanufactured products for import and export. Dynamically adjust the catalog of maintenance products in comprehensive bonded zones to support bonded maintenance operations that involve foreign entities at both ends.

(6) Grasp the demand in the international market for green trade. Overseas institutions and industry organizations should enhance their research on foreign markets to tap into the potential of the green and low-carbon market. Support foreign trade enterprises in utilizing the preferential arrangements of free trade agreements to expand trade cooperation in green and low-carbon fields, creating new highlights in foreign economic and trade cooperation.

(7) Enhance the level of greenness in exhibitions. Encourage exhibition companies to adopt a green and low-carbon approach to organizing events, leveraging the demonstrative role of major exhibitions such as the China International Import Expo, China Import and Export Fair, China International Fair for Trade in Services, Global Digital Trade Expo, and China International Consumer Products Expo. Promote the establishment of dedicated green and low-carbon zones and the organization of related thematic activities at exhibitions where conditions permit. Accelerate the development and revision of national and industry standards for green exhibitions.

(VIII) Guarantee the import of products and services related to green and low-carbon development. Study and improve the standards and management measures for the import of renewable resources. Utilize the role of local renewable resource trading centers to provide convenient services for enterprises importing resources such as recycled copper, aluminum, and steel. Revise the "Encouraged Services Import Directory" to guide enterprises in expanding the import of energy-saving, environmental protection, and green low-carbon services.

(9) Leverage the driving role of foreign trade and economic cooperation. Deepen cooperation with countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative in the field of green and low-carbon development. Promote the green and low-carbon development of overseas economic and trade cooperation zones. Utilize mechanisms such as the Foreign Investment Enterprise Roundtable to strengthen policy support and services for foreign-funded enterprises in green and low-carbon initiatives. Enhance the international recognition of Chinese products, technologies, and standards.

3. Creating a favorable international environment for the development of green trade

(10) Strengthen international communication and dialogue. Participate in global discussions on carbon-related economic and trade rules through platforms such as the G20, BRICS, APEC, and the UN Conference on Trade and Development, and put forward China's initiatives. Enhance the exchange of ideas on green and low-carbon development, and promote the establishment of more inclusive and equitable international green trade rules. Actively participate in negotiations on green issues in high-standard economic and trade agreements. Improve the level of environmental chapters in free trade agreements. Actively promote the achievements of China's green trade development to relevant foreign departments, industry organizations, and overseas business partners.

(11) Promote the formulation of relevant standards and international mutual recognition. Accelerate the establishment of a standard system for green and low-carbon products, technologies, and services that aligns with international standards. Conduct comparative analysis with international standards and convert a number of advanced and applicable green and low-carbon international standards into domestic standards. Support domestic organizations in participating in the formulation and revision of international standards related to green and low-carbon initiatives. Accelerate the establishment of a certification system for green shipping fuels and promote international mutual recognition. Develop and release a set of carbon footprint accounting standards for key export products. Encourage industry organizations and key export enterprises to formulate or participate in the development of international standards for product carbon footprint accounting. Strengthen cooperation in mutual recognition of conformity assessment in the green and low-carbon field through multilateral and bilateral channels.

4. Establish and improve the support and guarantee system for green trade.

Strengthen financial policy support. Encourage financial institutions to enrich financial products and services based on carbon footprint accounting and carbon labeling certification results for foreign trade products, under the premise of legal compliance and controllable risks. Encourage insurance institutions engaged in export credit insurance business to optimize underwriting and claims services in accordance with market-oriented and rule-of-law principles, further supporting the export of green and low-carbon related products.

(XIII) Accelerate the Construction of a Carbon Footprint Database for Foreign Trade Products. Accelerate the establishment of a national carbon footprint factor database, release and continuously update electricity carbon footprint factor data, and promote research on carbon footprint factors for other basic energy and raw materials to provide a foundation for foreign trade enterprises to calculate product carbon footprints. Encourage industries and enterprises with the necessary conditions to build industry-specific carbon footprint factor databases. Encourage cooperation between international carbon footprint database providers and Chinese carbon footprint database providers.

(XIV) Utilize the Role of Carbon Pricing Mechanism and Green Certificates in Supporting Green Electricity. Improve and refine the carbon pricing mechanism to guide foreign trade enterprises in leveraging it to expand international markets. Fully tap into the potential of green electricity supply and expand the scale of green certificate and green electricity trading to further meet the needs of foreign trade enterprises. Encourage regions with favorable resource conditions to increase the supply of green electricity to enterprises through direct connections with new energy sources, and actively explore the local and nearby supply of new energy to export parks. Strengthen communication on issues such as carbon costs, carbon footprints, and green certificates, guiding trade partners to recognize China's carbon pricing mechanism and green certificates.

(15) Strengthening the development of talent teams. Support industry organizations, universities, and think tanks in strengthening research on green trade topics and cultivating talent related to green trade. Form a green trade expert group to nurture a group of application-oriented experts with an international perspective. Relying on localities, industries, think tanks, enterprises, etc., establish green trade work liaison points to promptly track and understand frontline practical situations.

Strengthening Monitoring, Analysis, and Policy Support. Research and establish a continuously improving green trade statistical monitoring and analysis system. Local commerce departments and customs authorities should strengthen cooperation in statistical analysis, exploring practices related to green trade statistical monitoring and analysis. Guide industry organizations, think tanks, and third-party institutions to conduct in-depth research, further enriching and expanding green trade measures by industry. Accelerate the improvement of the green trade policy system, strengthening coordination with industrial, technological, fiscal, tax, and financial policies to create a favorable environment for the development of green trade.