China is entering into a new phase of opening up. Plans now include broadening market access, raising foreign equity caps and creating a more attractive investment environment. The country relied mainly on providing favorable policies for foreign investors in the past, but now will rely on improving its investment environment. It will strengthen protection of intellectual property rights, or IPR. This is the centerpiece of the system for improving property rights protection, and it will also provide the biggest boost to enhancing the competitiveness of the Chinese economy.

The country this year will significantly lower the import tariff for vehicles and also reduce import tariffs for some other products. This seemingly reconsidered stance comes amid escalating tensions between the US and China, which have been locked in a tariff standoff. China outlined $50 billion worth of tariffs on US goods including cotton. The US detailed 1,300 products from China that would face new tariffs.

The back-and-forth has sent markets roiling, stocks tizzying and kept apparel brands and manufacturers on edge as they wait to see how things will shape up. Concerns over China’s intellectual property practices have been largely the focus of America’s tariff targets. The US says China forces US companies looking to do business there to transfer sensitive data and intellectual property.