Products made domestically – no matter the nature of the manufacturer’s ownership – will be accorded preferential treatment in Chinese government procurement, including a 20 per cent reduction in bidding price, said the country’s Ministry of Finance.
The ministry announced the policy – and requested public comment – in a draft document released on Thursday.
“[We will] treat all types of business entities equally,” read the notice. “State-owned enterprises, private enterprises, foreign-invested enterprises and other entities shall enjoy equal government procurement support for their locally made products.”
After listing the criteria the ministry would use to determine whether a given product is locally made, the document laid out how the bidding process would work. “Where both domestic and non-domestic products compete,” it said, “the price after deduction will be used for evaluation.”
As price is a major determinant for which bidder gets a contract, this would grant domestic producers a proportional advantage.
