Just after midnight on January 1, 2022, Qingdao Customs issued RCEP Certificate of Origin for over 2,800 tons of calcium chloride exported to Japan by Qingdao Bay Group Co., LTD., the first RCEP certificate of origin in China, at Qingdao Pilot Innovation Base for Economic and Trade Cooperation under the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). "With this certificate of origin, the tariff rate can be reduced from 3.3 percent to 3 percent when the goods arrive in Japan." Liu Kun, business manager of the company, said the tax reduction for this shipment alone amounted to nearly 10,000 yuan.

On January 1, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) officially entered into force for six ASEAN members -- Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam -- as well as 10 countries -- China, Japan, New Zealand and Australia. The Republic of Korea has also completed its approval process, which will take effect on February 1, and other member states are stepping up their approval procedures. The world's largest free trade area has officially set sail.

Tariff preference immediately landed, enterprises benefit

On the morning of January 1, Xugong Construction Machinery Group Import and Export Co., LTD., located in Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province, was certified by Nanjing Customs as one of the first approved exporters in China after the implementation of RCEP, and immediately issued the country's first declaration of origin under RCEP for a concrete mixer to be exported to Thailand. On January 1, 16 customs under Nanjing Customs, including Changzhou Customs, Nantong Customs and Suzhou Industrial Park Customs, issued 36 certificates of origin under RCEP with a total value of $5.483,500.

Ccpit is also stepping up action. On the first day the RCEP came into effect, CCEP and local agencies issued 158 RCEP certificates of origin for 69 enterprises across the country, involving exports worth US $12 million, which is expected to reduce tariffs for enterprises by US $180,000. Under the RCEP, certificates of origin for exports to Singapore, Thailand, Japan, New Zealand and Australia have been issued electronically. The Council for the Promotion of International Trade has also launched such facilitation services as "appointment booking", "post processing" and "expedited processing" to facilitate rapid customs clearance and benefit from tariff reduction.

"Starting from today, China will fully fulfill all commitments and obligations under the RCEP agreement." On January 1, Yang Zhengwei, deputy director general of the Department of International Affairs of the Ministry of Commerce, introduced that the proportion of immediate zero tariff between China and ASEAN, Australia and New Zealand is all over 65%, the proportion of immediate zero tariff between China and South Korea is 39% and 50%, and the proportion of immediate zero tariff between China and Japan is 25% and 57%, respectively, due to the newly established free trade relations. On this basis, RCEP member countries will basically enjoy zero tariffs on 90 percent of their products within 10 years.

We will promote regional economic integration and enjoy broad space for development

"RCEP will significantly enhance the level of regional economic integration in East Asia." Tu Xinquan, director of the China WTO Institute at the University of International Business and Economics, said most RCEP members are China's close neighbors. With the unification of rules of origin, customs clearance procedures, inspection and quarantine, technical standards and other cargo rules, the reduction of tariffs and the removal of non-tariff barriers will have a stacking effect and significantly enhance trade links among the members.

At midnight on January 1, Shenzhen Huanggang Port received the first batch of imported goods after the RCEP agreement took effect. 5.6 tons of reflective film originally made in Japan were inspected by Shenzhen Customs officers and released. It will be used to produce backlight products such as mobile phones and digital cameras. Meanwhile, in Linyi, Shandong province, on the early morning of January 1, the Qingdao Customs office of Linyi Customs issued RCEP certificate of origin for a batch of garments purchased and exported to Japan by Shandong Kangrong International Trade Co., LTD.

Under the RCEP, the production and use of materials originating from other member States by enterprises of member States can be regarded as the cumulative increase in the value of the original materials, making it easier for export products between member states to reach the threshold of benefits. "This will encourage producers to allocate production resources in the region, give play to the resource endowment and comparative advantages of countries in the region, and help the region form a closer and more resilient industrial and supply chain with broad space for development." Yan Yun, director of CCPIT Commercial Certification Center, said relevant companies should give full play to the advantages of China's whole industrial chain, make good use of the large market of regional integration, and lead development through innovation.

It is not only bigger, but also more open. Tu said that in the field of trade in services, the level of openness under the RCEP is significantly higher than that under other bilateral and multilateral agreements, and the RCEP will be turned into a negative list within six years of its entry into force. In the area of investment, members have made high-quality commitments to adopt a negative list approach for non-service investment, with no new restrictions added to the list and enhanced investment protection.

According to the simulation results of the Assessment Report on the Impact of RCEP on Regional Economy released by the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation of the Ministry of Commerce, by 2035, the RCEP will generate a cumulative increase of US $857.1 billion in regional exports and US $983.7 billion in regional imports, injecting strong impetus to regional and global economic growth.

We will strengthen publicity and promotion to help enterprises make good use of the rules of the agreement

How to apply for CO (CEPA)? How to determine regional cumulative value? In order to help foreign trade enterprises understand the new rules and make good use of them, Beijing Customs organized six rounds of online and offline RCEP policy briefings on four major topics of interest to enterprises, including tariff reduction schedule and rules of origin, and compiled and distributed to enterprises the RCEP Q&A Booklet and Customs Business Q&A on Export Origin, to help enterprises make good use of the agreement dividends. Shanghai Customs promotes "digital transformation", such as intelligent verification of origin, and optimizes the management mode of origin. Guangzhou Customs provides professional policy interpretation for enterprises through online training, on-site guidance and other forms.

At present, the General Administration of Customs of China has agreed with the customs authorities of other countries on specific measures on the implementation of the country of origin, and promulgated the Measures on the Administration of the Country of Origin of Import and Export Goods under the RCEP and the Measures on the Administration of Approved Exporters. The Ministry of Commerce has held three national RCEP training sessions covering all prefecture-level cities, with more than 66,000 participants, more than 70 percent of whom were business representatives.

The RCEP is a systematic and comprehensive policy system that covers trade in goods, trade in services, two-way investment, intellectual property rights, trade remedies, competition and other all-dimensional and multi-sectoral opening arrangements. It will bring significant development opportunities to businesses. Taking agriculture as an example, the RCEP region is an important destination for China's agriculture to go global. The negative list management has greatly expanded market access restrictions, which will help Chinese agricultural enterprises carry out mutually beneficial cooperation in regional agricultural planting and processing.

Experts suggested that local governments should adapt to local conditions and fully integrate FTA strategies, including RCEP, into regional and local development strategies. For example, the Northeast and the Bohai Rim can leverage their geographical advantages to build a Northeast Asian economic circle and a bridgehead for opening up to Japan and the ROK. Another example is that Guangdong, relying on the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, is a connecting hub between China and Southeast Asia. It can combine manufacturing with design, logistics, finance and other services to build itself into a global supply chain center facing East Asia. (Reporter Du Haitao Luo Shanshan)