On Feb. 17, the National Working Conference on commercial reform and development was held in Hangzhou. Jiang Zengwei, Member of the Leading Party Group and Vice Minister of Commerce, attended the Conference and gave a speech.

Mr. Jiang Zengwei pointed out that work of circulation became more and more important under new tendency, expansion of consumption demand became the key factor to drive up economic growth, improvement of circulation efficiency played an important role to change economic growth mode, to foster and exploit rural market was the significant stage to build up a new socialist countryside, and to develop domestic trade and service industry was a favorable channel to expand employment.

According to new situation and requirement faced with commercial work during the Eleventh Five-year Planning, Mr. Jiang Zengwei said, we should insist on the scientific outlook on development to guide the domestic trade, endeavor to exploit market, expand consumption with the principle of serving national economy and social development, actively promote circulation modernization, improve competitiveness of circulation entities, strengthen capacity of market inspection, adjustment and control, expedite the development of service industry, push forward regional coordinate development of domestic trade, further rectify and regulate market circulation order and upgrade the level of opening-up in domestic trade.

The Minister pointed out that 2006 was the first year of the Eleventh Five-year Planning and the key year to push forward commercial reform and development. We should properly solve better the issue of history (debts) of state-owned circulation enterprises and speed up fostering big companies and groups in circulation; attach importance to major central cities, launch the project of “two entries” of commerce in communities with a theme of prompting “convenient consumption to enter into communities, and convenient service to enter into families ”; launch work of classification of retail sales enterprises on the basis of stores to make efforts to foster national brands of retail sales enterprises and improve the service level and competitiveness in an all-round way; maintain pushing forward work on demonstration project for deepening circulation mechanism reform, promote circulation modernization and innovate transformation of circulation growth mode; implement the project of revitalizing Time-Honored Brands, set up and improve rules and criterion of major industries, broaden service area and enhance development of standardization, industrialization and facilitation of commercial service; develop cyclic economy and promote saving-oriented development of circulation industry; strengthen construction of spiritual civilization of commerce, strongly advocate the traditional virtue of “thriving commerce through business ethics and openness basing on sincerity”, enhance IPR protection to guarantee the scientific innovation and brand construction of domestic trade.

Mr. Jiang Zengwei stressed that we should enhance basic work of domestic trade, strengthen the promotion of major works, reinforce theoretical study, expedite legislation, standardization and informationlization construction of domestic trade circulation, transform governmental function, and improve the working methodology to bring about a new pattern of domestic trade.

Di Jiankai, Director of MOFCOM Department of Commercial Reform and Development, made a working report at the Conference. Meanwhile, the Conference gave award to demonstration communities of commerce nationwide. Another 4 symposiums were held during the conference.

The National Working Conference on Commercial Reform and Development lasted for 2 days, task of which was to summarize in an all-round way the work of commercial reform and development in 2005, study thought of development of Chinese circulation industry during the Eleventh Five-year Planning and arrange works in 2006.

Delegates from departments of China's state organs, administrative departments of commerce at all levels, demonstration cities for mechanism reform of circulation and relative associations took part in the Conference.

(Source: Network Center of MOFCOM)