China will step up measures to support the growth of cross-border e-commerce, the State Council decided at an executive meeting on July 3.

More cities will be encouraged to launch cross-border e-commerce pilot zones on top of the 35 existing zones nationwide, according to a statement released after the meeting. Retail goods exported from the pilot zones will be exempted from value-added tax, and authorities will introduce simpler methods for verifying and collecting corporate income tax, the statement said.

According to the statement, supporting the growth of cross-border e-commerce is an important move to develop industry and increase exports and imports. Those at the meeting also recognized the role of e-commerce in promoting the growth of the express delivery industry, creating jobs and boosting innovation and entrepreneurship.

The government will offer incentives for the building of platforms that serve the development of cross-border e-commerce and logistics services, the statement said. More work will be done to establish, improve and expand overseas warehouses.

Zhang Zhouping, a senior analyst at the China E-Commerce Research Center, said the achievements pilot free trade zones have made have been recognized by the government. The newly admitted pilot cities are expected to benefit the industry and the city.

Zhu Qiucheng, general manager of Ningbo New Oriental Manufacturing and Trading Co, a company that makes and sells wooden craft products, said the increase in the number of pilot cities will help to replicate the advanced experience of previous cross-border e-commerce parks and promote the development of cross-border e-commerce in China.

In regard to the simpler methods for verifying and collecting corporate income tax, Zhu said they can greatly reduce the human and time cost of cross-border e-commerce enterprises and speed up the tax refund process.

Li Pengbo, co-founder of Shenzhen Tomtop Technology Co, a local cross-border e-commerce enterprise, was glad to see these measures released by the State Council which he hopes can bring real benefits.

In 2018, the total value of cross-border e-commerce in China reached 710 billion yuan ($103.2 billion), a year-on-year increase of 12.7 percent.

3C electronic products, clothing and accessories and other traditional consumer goods have always been the best-selling category on global cross-border e-commerce platforms. In addition, there is also large demand for home gardening, outdoor, and health and beauty products. Domestic competitive industries are powering the development of cross-border e-commerce.

The patterns and methods of cross-border e-commerce exports are also constantly being innovated. The export B2B (Business-to-Business) platform are transforming from a simple information service model to an online transaction model to become an integrated service provider.

Moreover, overseas warehouses are improving the experience for overseas consumers. The seller wholesales the goods to overseas warehouses, where workers deal with orders in the back-office system of the overseas warehouses, which can provide more efficient and low-cost service to consumers.

Encouraging the development of overseas warehouses in more places is a great way to bolster the high-quality development of cross-border e-commerce.