MNI China Press Digest July 5: Tax, U.S. Firms, E-commerce

Highlights from Chinese press reports on Friday:

• China can improve local government tax revenue stability by reforming consumption tax sharing between central and local governments into a local tax, 21st Century Business Herald reported citing Ma Guangrong, deputy dean of the School of Finance, Renmin University. Authorities could move tax collection from production to wholesale and retail stages, and expand the taxable scope to include more items, said Ma. Ma also suggested giving municipal and county governments greater autonomy in debt raising, which requires improved information disclosure to allow investors to effectively price bonds and launching pilot schemes in developed regions first, Ma added.
• Beijing welcomes U.S. companies to invest and deepen their presence in the Chinese market, Vice Minister of Commerce Wang Shouwen has said. Speaking with U.S. business representatives in Beijing, Wang said China hopes to create a good policy and trade environment with the United States, and share the dividends of development with U.S. firms. Wang believed the heads of state meeting in San Francisco had set the direction of economic relations between the two countries. (Source: Yicai)
• China's e-commerce logistics index reached 114.8 points in June, up 0.9 points m/m, marking the fourth consecutive increase, according to the China Logistics Information Center (CLIC). Liu Yuhang, director at the CLIC, said the results showed consumption expectations were improving. The total business volume sub-index read 132.9 points, up 3.1 points m/m, while the rural e-commerce sub-index hit 132.1 points, up 2.4 points m/m. (Source: Securities Daily)