Review №33 of Chinese Antitrust News from the Experts of the BRICS Competition Centre
- Competition in Proposals for the Development of the 15th Five-Year Plan
- Results of the Processing of NPC Proposals on the Digital Economy
- China-ASEAN Free Trade 3.0
- Nationwide Social Support on Meituan
- 1Lecture 10 on Antitrust Compliance
Competition in Proposals for the Development of the 15th Five-Year Plan
From October 20 to 23, 2025, the 4th Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China was held in Beijing. At the plenary session, the “Proposals of the CPC Central Committee on the Development of the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development” were reviewed and adopted.
Section 5, “Building a Strong Domestic Market and Accelerating the Formation of a New Development Model,” includes provisions on fair competition:
“[It is necessary] to resolutely remove obstacles and bottlenecks that hinder the construction of a unified national market,” specifically:
- Improve the system for protecting property rights, market access, regulation of mergers and acquisitions, and market exit
- Eliminate barriers to access to production factors
- Regulate local government policies on economic incentives
- Combat local protectionism and market segmentation
- Address the problem of “involutionary” competition comprehensively
- Standardize market supervision and law enforcement
- Strengthen antitrust regulation and corresponding judicial procedures
- Promote the establishment of a market order characterized by fair pricing and healthy competition.
Results of the Processing of NPC Proposals on the Digital Economy
At the session of China’s legislative body — the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress — many delegates submitted proposals in March this year to strengthen the regulation of online marketplaces, a relatively new business format often characterized by uncontrolled competition and unfair practices (false advertising, counterfeit products, etc.).
Specifically, it was proposed to:
- Strengthen control over platform pricing algorithms
- Use new technologies (AI, etc.) to create a platform price monitoring system
- Develop an online price registration system to prevent platforms from lowering prices below factory levels,
- Introduce accountability for livestream hosts regarding the quality of products sold
- Create a joint governance mechanism involving SAMR, the Cyberspace Administration, and the Public Security Bureau
SAMR took these proposals into action and promptly introduced measures to address the identified issues, including:
- Market disorder: Conducted an online market safety campaign, reviewing 36,000 cases of advertising violations and price fraud on e-commerce platforms.
- Excessive platform subsidies: Strengthened supervision of pricing policies and released the “Guiding Principles for Online Platform Commission Collection.”
- Regulation of marketing livestreams: Conducted administrative talks with platforms, created a blacklist system for violators, and developed “Measures for Regulating Marketing Livestreams.”
These comprehensive measures have effectively improved the e-commerce platform ecosystem. Survey results showed that nearly 70% of sellers on major online platforms believe that platform conditions improved this year; over 70% of consumers noted efforts to optimize the user experience; and more than half of delivery workers were satisfied with the efforts to correct violations.
Source: SAMR
China-ASEAN Free Trade 3.0
On October 28, 2025, in Kuala Lumpur, China’s Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao and Malaysia’s Minister of International Trade and Industry Tengku Zafrul Aziz, representing China and ASEAN respectively, signed the updated “Free Trade Zone 3.0 Agreement.”
Version 3.0 adds five new areas: digital economy, green economy, supply chain connectivity, competition, and the protection of consumers and SMEs.
The main content of the agreement covers nine key areas of modernization, including competition. The parties plan to develop a comprehensive competition law framework, create mechanisms for antitrust exchanges and cooperation, and establish cross-border collaboration in antitrust law enforcement between China and ASEAN countries.
Nationwide Social Support on Meituan
Amid concerns about gig workers’ labor protections, Meituan launched a national social support program for its couriers. Most notably, nationwide subsidies are now available for social insurance, pension contributions, and work injury insurance. Upon request, special subsidies for children’s education and expensive medical treatment can also be provided—these programs are not yet universal but are planned for broader access in the future. In addition, Meituan has begun selectively offering travel vouchers, meal coupons during working hours, and reimbursements for annual medical check-ups.
Couriers, like taxi drivers, are considered one of the most vulnerable labor groups because they work for internet platforms under flexible employment arrangements. Authorities have repeatedly emphasized the need to provide them with social protection comparable to that in traditional labor relations, and internet platforms are actively working on implementing relevant policies.
Source: Meituan
Lecture 10 on Antitrust Compliance
As part of the lecture series on antitrust compliance conducted by China’s market regulator SAMR, the 10th lecture was held on “The Importance of Compliance for Rational Competition among Manufacturing Enterprises.”
Officials focused on principles of fair competition in the manufacturing sector and provided explanations of applicable regulations and antitrust laws. More than 100 manufacturing enterprises participated in the event, both online and offline.
Source: SAMR
