On March 15, Foreign Investment Law of People's Republic of China was signed into force, indicating the nation's determination to expand its opening-up efforts. On March 28, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region hosted a press conference to introduce the region's major industrial investment promotion endeavor in 2019, showing a proactive attitude in inviting worldwide entrepreneurs. Located in the Lingnan area of China, Guangxi is the only location in western China with maritime access, and is today home to over 56 million people. The region possesses clear advantages for opening-up, and is a crucial supplier of raw material, agricultural products, labor and industrial transfer recipient of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Guangxi is also the permanent host of China-ASEAN Expo and a vital gateway for connection to the "Belt and Road". The press release revealed that in 2018 Guangxi initiated a major business environment optimization program that will be undertaken in three years to enhance the level of legality, internationalization and convenience. In 2019, Guangxi will deepen its major breakthrough-year-campaign of industrial investment promotion, focus on the "strengthen leadership, reinforce chain, assemble cluster" requirements, concentrate on key industries like greater health, big data, greater logistics, new manufacturing, new materials and new energy, and emphatically carry out its global investment promotion plan. The press release introduced Guangxi's key investment promotion projects: Greater health: Introduce projects of industries like wellbeing and senior care, healthcare tourism, leisure sports, cultural entertainment, anime and comics, healthy food, selenium-oriented agriculture, biomedicine and other industrial projects. Big data: Introduce and cultivate projects of application technologies and emerging service formats, like big data, cloud computing, block chain, IoT, voice and image recognition; introduce projects of next-generation industry, likes mart terminal, wearable, flexible display screen, quantum communication. Greater logistics: Introduce projects of logistics park, like sea port, river port, roadway port, railway port, airport and information port, infrastructure construction projects, and projects of industry like third-party logistics, cold-chain, e-commerce and smart logistics technology. New manufacturing: Introduce projects of industries, like robotics, 3D printing, UAV, smart automobile, aerospace equipment, maritime equipment, advanced rapid transit equipment, science and technology service, culture and creativity. New materials: Introduce R&D projects of cutting-edge materials industries, like aluminum fine and deep processing, rare earth energy drink, high-performance metal and alloy materials, nano calcium carbonate, laser glass, environment friendly building materials and other high-quality non-metallic materials, graphene and high-temperature superconductor. New energy: Introduce projects of industries, like NEV whole vehicle and key components and parts like battery and motor, and high-efficiency solar power, marine energy, biomass energy technology and application, energy-conservation technology, environmental technology and resource recycling technology. In 2019 Guangxi will strive to notch a 50% increase in actually used foreign investment to USD750 million. As such, Guangxi has been dedicated to optimizing business environment, in order to be up nationally tier-one standards in seven business environment indicators like enterprise establishment, engineering and construction project application and real estate registration before June. At the same time, Guangxi will also team up with Chongqing, Sichuan and other provinces and cities in western China to earnestly promote the formation of a new international land-sea trade corridor in western China and attract investment and cooperation globally. The Investment Promotion Agency of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region suggested the region will leverage the advantages of professional organizations for investment promotion in emerging industries, and carry out professionalized and targeted investment promotion activities, establish a global investment promotion network. Source: Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region