(6 September 2000) To promote development in western China, the State Development Planning Commission (
SDPC) issued regulations on the use of price controls.In order to allow prices to adjust to supply and demand, the SDPC relaxed five price controls in the western region: rail transportation, airfare, auto manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and tourism.
The government will no longer fix prices for some of ChinaĄŻs rail transportation; it will provide price guidance instead. A combination of government guidance prices and market prices will be introduced in feeder transportation, reported the Aug. 31 issue of the Renmin Ribao (
PeopleĄŻs Daily).Airfare for routes between and within provinces in the west will be subject to market forces, and airlines are allowed to set prices no more than 10 percent beyond the prescribed price range.
Auto manufacturers in western China, including the Chongqing ChangĄŻan Suzuki Automotive Co., Alto-manufacturer XiĄŻan Qinchuan Automotive Co. and Skylark-producer Guizhou Aviation Industrial Co., will be allowed to sell their cars according to what the market can bear, the article said.
Pricing of new medicines produced by pharmaceutical enterprises in western areas (as well as Tibetan, Mongolian and Uygur medicines on the list of medicines for basic medical insurance for urban workers) will be subject to the approval of provincial price authorities and reported to SDPC for filing.
Ten tourist destinations, including the Dazu Stone Inscription Museum in
Chongqing, the Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong scenic spots in Sichuan, the Lunan Stone Forest in Yunnan, the Potala Palace in Tibet, the terra cotta warriors site in XiĄŻan, the Shaanxi Museum of History, the Forest of Steles Museum in XiĄŻan, and the Dunhuang grottoes and Maijishan grottoes in Gansu, will have prices fixed by local provincial price authorities and reported to the SDPC for filing.Speeding up infrastructure construction
In order to quicken the pace of infrastructure construction in the western region, the SDPC is advocating the adoption of supportive price policies for raising funds.
The western region will continue to be allowed to build second-grade toll highways, and foreign investment and social funds are encouraged in road construction, the story said. Investors can collect construction fees on some regional highways to get a return on their investment in the roads.
Proactive policies will be adopted to ease power price contradictions in western power networks and encourage investment in the regionĄŻs power industry. The cost of power transmission and distribution of various networks will be determined separately. Power producers are encouraged to sign electricity purchase contracts directly with users to lower prices. The cost of power transmission between backbone networks of eastern and western regions will be lowered appropriately to encourage diversion of power in the western to the eastern parts of China.
A water price policy with cost compensation and reasonable return from investment will be adopted for new water supply projects.
Western cities that have not collected sewage-treatment fees are required to do so soon, while cities that have already collected the fees are urged to raise the charges, the story added.