Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Tuesday called for strengthening government regulation to guard against market monopolies and unfair competition, so as to better protect the development of small businesses in the country.
Small, medium-sized and micro-sized enterprises should have more choices and scope for growth in fair competition, while large companies should take a leading role in offering supportive facilities and providing a driving force in the industry chain, Li said during a meeting with Chinese economists and entrepreneurs.
Li’s remarks came as the nation ramps up efforts to better govern internet data and protect national security via a flurry of regulatory moves imposed on internet platforms over cybersecurity as well as to prevent monopolistic practices.
The State Administration for Market Regulation on Saturday rejected the merger of two streaming sites Huya and Douyu after an anti-monopoly review.
Three more internet platforms – US-listed job recruiting platform Boss Zhipin, and Yunmanman and Huochebang, two truck-booking platforms under the Full Truck Alliance – were investigated for cybersecurity risks last week following the cybersecurity regulator’s review of the country’s top ride-hailing firm Didi Chuxing just two days after its New York debut.
The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) released a draft revision over the weekend covering cybersecurity review measures, especially for Chinese companies that seek IPOs overseas.
In an article published on Tuesday in the People’s Political Consultative Daily, under the auspices of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, it said that the sprawling platform economy in China should be reined in to prevent it from “exploiting surplus labor and its high surplus value endlessly.”
Meanwhile, the newspaper called for safeguarding the market order of fair competition.
“It is necessary to ensure that all business forms of the economy, including state-owned enterprises, private enterprises, foreign enterprises, and large enterprises, small enterprises and other market entities, can use production factors and participate in market competition fairly in accordance with laws and regulations, and enjoy equal policy and legal protection,” it read.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang visits the Hengli Hydraulic Co., Ltd. in Changzhou, east China’s Jiangsu Province, March 25, 2021.(Photo: Xinhua)
