Shanghai's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) for accelerating the city's development as an international trade center sets out its main goals and priorities through 2030.

The city aims to consolidate its position as a global trade hub, improve the structure and quality of trade, strengthen its capabilities in global supply chain management and in allocating bulk commodity resources, increase its appeal as an international consumption center, and advance high-standard opening-up.

Key targets through 2030

The plan sets 10 indicative targets for trade, consumption, and hub functions:

Trade: Retain the top spot in the global ranking of trade port cities; bring cumulative goods imports and exports to more than $3 trillion during 2026-30; increase imports and exports of services to more than $300 billion; and bring cumulative offshore trade to at least $500 billion during the five-year period.

Consumption: Strive for an average annual growth of around 5 percent in total retail sales of consumer goods; open around 900 high-profile first stores during 2026-30; and increase sales of goods under the departure tax refund program to around 20 billion yuan ($2.98 billion).

Hub functions: Increase the number of bulk commodity trading entities with trade values of at least 100 billion yuan to around 15; recognize at least 300 additional regional headquarters of multinational companies; and recognize around 200 additional foreign-funded R&D centers during the period.

Strengthening Shanghai's role as a global trade hub

Shanghai will focus on:

Global supply chains: Attracting and fostering global supply chain management centers, and encouraging companies capable of organizing domestic and international supply chains to establish such centers in Shanghai. The city will also promote the digital and intelligent transformation of supply chain management.

Bulk commodity resource allocation: Fostering and attracting bulk commodity trading entities, expanding the range of commodities traded, strengthening digital applications, and increasing the international influence of Shanghai-based bulk commodity pricing benchmarks. More futures and options products will be made directly available to overseas traders, and more renminbi-denominated products will be introduced for international trading.

Digital shipping and trade infrastructure: Leveraging the Shanghai hub of China's national blockchain network to strengthen digital shipping and trade infrastructure and upgrade the China (Shanghai) International Trade Single Window. The city will enhance data coordination, promote cross-border mutual recognition of electronic documents, and expand digital verification and settlement services for offshore trade.

Promoting innovation in trade

Key measures include:

Goods trade: Expanding imports of advanced technologies, major equipment, and key components; diversifying imports of essential agricultural, energy, and resource products; and broadening import channels for high-quality consumer goods. Shanghai will also strengthen export competitiveness in industries such as integrated circuits, artificial intelligence, biomedicine, and new energy vehicles, and expand trade in intermediate goods.

Services trade: Further deepening opening-up pilots in service sectors such as finance and shipping, facilitating the movement of natural persons, advancing the implementation of the negative list for cross-border trade in services, and developing new models and forms of services trade.

Digital trade: Promoting cultural, technology, and data trade; strengthening the international board of the Shanghai Data Exchange; developing services that process data received from overseas; and facilitating cross-border data flows.

Emerging trade models: Supporting cross-border e-commerce, improving overseas warehouse and logistics services, developing offshore trade, and promoting new models of bonded and green trade.

Strengthening Shanghai's role as an international consumption center

Shanghai will focus on:

Brands and new experiences: Encouraging domestic and international brands to launch products and host debut showcases and exhibitions in Shanghai, enhancing the influence of major shopping festivals, and developing more distinctive commercial districts and nightlife clusters.

Events and services: Bringing in more top-tier international sporting events, major concerts, renowned music festivals, major cultural and museum exhibitions, and high-quality theater productions.

Inbound consumption: Enhancing the Easy Go inbound services platform and the Hu Xiaoyou AI assistant, promoting mobile access to departure tax refund services, and improving multilingual signage, acceptance of overseas-issued bank cards, foreign currency exchange, and luggage storage.

Advancing high-standard opening-up

Shanghai will focus on:

Opening-up platforms: Further developing the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone and major platforms, including the China International Import Expo, the Hongqiao International Central Business District, the Eastern Hub International Business Cooperation Zone, and the Silk Road E-commerce Cooperation Pilot Zone.

Foreign investment: Seeking to ease market access restrictions on a category-by-category basis in key service sectors and supporting foreign-invested companies in conducting local R&D, upgrading technology, pursuing green and low-carbon transformation, and reinvesting within China. Shanghai will support corporate headquarters in adding higher-level functions and upgrading to Asia-Pacific headquarters or global headquarters for specific business units, while encouraging foreign-funded R&D centers to increase R&D investment and pursue open innovation. The city will also guarantee national treatment in key sectors, enhance services for foreign-invested firms, and safeguard their rights and interests.

Trade facilitation: Optimizing customs clearance and regulatory models, promoting multimodal transport, and improving logistics efficiency at ports and airports and across international air and maritime transport networks.

Sources: Shanghai Municipal People's Government, VCG