Guangdong expands high‑level cross‑border trade and finance pilot

Guangdong Province has accelerated the high‑level open pilot for cross‑border trade and investment that began in the Nansha Free‑Trade Zone in 2022 and is slated for province‑wide rollout by 2024. By the end of June, 6,911 enterprises had processed 1.06 million transactions worth about $368.8 billion under the scheme. New rules simplify documentation, allowing qualified firms to settle net export‑import balances without individual paperwork and to ease foreign‑exchange handling for employee salaries.

Financial data released at a July 27 press conference show Guangdong’s social financing stock at 44.2 trillion yuan, with loans totaling 31 trillion yuan and deposits 40.5 trillion yuan. Cross‑border receipts reached $1.4 trillion, a 17.5 % year‑on‑year rise, generating a net inflow of $162.1 billion. Loans to technology, green, inclusive, pension and digital projects contributed over 90 % of the credit increase, while average new corporate loan rates fell to 2.60 %. The province also expanded the “Cross‑border Wealth Management Connect” and “Cross‑border Pension Connect” services, covering over 180,000 participants.