Easier Access to Foreign Capital Unlikely to Benefit Rail Sector, Experts Say

By Sun Lizhao, Lu Bingyang and Coco Feng

High-speed trains are seen at South Guangzhou Railway Station before their morning departures in September 2016. The Chinese government announced on Tuesday it will lift restrictions on foreign investment in railway transit equipment manufacturing. Photo: IC

(Beijing) — Beijing’s new proposals to relax restrictions on foreign investment in rail transit equipment are unlikely to have much effect on an industry already suffering from excess domestic capacity and dominated by local players, industry insiders say.

The State Council, China’s cabinet, said on Tuesday that it will revise the current “negative list” and relax restrictions on foreign investment in manufacturing, services and mining. The latest negative list, issued in 2015, specifies that foreign rail transport manufacturers must partner with Chinese companies if they want to operate in the country.