Beginning with the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone, we have established 11 pilot free trade zones. A number of successful outcomes from pilot reforms are now being applied nationwide.
We have reformed the cost-sharing mechanism for export tax rebates, and the central government now pays the full sum of increases in export tax rebates. We have set up 13 comprehensive experimental zones for cross-border e-commerce. Single-window document processing for international trade has been applied nationwide, cutting the average time for customs clearance by over half. Imports and exports have rebounded and steadily grown.
For foreign investment, we have replaced the approval system with a negative list model, and have cut restrictions by two thirds. The composition of foreign investment has improved, with investment in high-tech industries doubling. We have intensified efforts to attract talent, and the number of foreign experts working in China has grown by 40 percent.
We have guided the healthy development of outbound investment. We have moved forward with international cooperation on production capacity; high-speed rail, nuclear power, and other types of Chinese equipment have entered international markets. We have signed or upgraded eight free trade agreements. We have launched the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect, the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect, and the Bond Connect. The RMB was included in the IMF' s Special Drawing Rights basket, representing a major step forward in its internationalization.
China has opened its doors wider to the world. This opening has played a powerful role in our own development, and it presents important opportunities for the rest of the world.
Sixth, with a commitment to implementing the coordinated regional development and new urbanization strategies, we have promoted more balanced development, and seen new growth poles and belts developing faster.
We have actively pursued coordinated development of Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei, and the development of the Yangtze Economic Belt, drawn up and implemented related plans, and undertaken a number of key projects. We have unveiled a whole series of reforms and innovative measures to see the western region develop, northeast China revitalized, the central region rise, and the eastern region spearhead development. We have stepped up support for old revolutionary base areas, areas with large ethnic minority populations, border areas, and poor areas, and strengthened aid work in Tibet, Xinjiang,
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