Negative List in the SHPFTZ and Its Implications for China's Future FDI Legal System

摘要

The Negative List Approach in the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone (SHPFTZ) is an incremental step towards equal treatment for foreign-invested enterprises in China. Nonetheless, the Chinese government's reluctance and prudence in further opening-up, especially in domestic liberalization, is an encumbrance to the advancement of its large economy. The Negative List Approach in the SHPFTZ has many fundamental flaws, including low-level authority, uncertainty, limited effects, and incomplete reform. However, the Negative List Approach in the SHPFTZ is at least a model for other new FTZs in China and a reference for China's future new FDI regulatory framework.