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By Dai Qi

The World Bank Group released its flagship report Doing Business 2019 on Wednesday, saying that China is one of this year's top 10 improvers, and has advanced more than 30 spots to the 46th place in the global rankings.

The report commented that the Chinese government is taking a carefully-designed approach to reform, aiming to improve the business regulatory environment over the course of several years.

"China is the only economy from East Asia and the Pacific to join the Doing Business 2019 list of the top 10 improvers. China focused its reform efforts in 2017 and 2018 on increasing the efficiency of business processes," said the report.

In detail, the utility distribution companies in both Beijing and Shanghai have undertaken several initiatives that significantly reduced the time to obtain a new electricity connection. 

"China digitalized new grid connection applications offering online payment while eliminating external site visit from the utility in Beijing," said the report.

Meanwhile, during the first half of 2018, China introduced reform measures to streamline its construction permitting process by implementing unified platforms for all building review processes carried out before the approval of a building permit in both Beijing and Shanghai. 

"The reforms have also simplified documentation requirements, improved processing times, expanded public access to information and introduced a unified application for inspections carried out after the completion of construction," said the report.

Similarly, the District Real Estate Registries of both Beijing and Shanghai have implemented a new connected platform for streamlining the registration process for new buildings, according to the report.

To facilitate cross-border trade, China has also implemented a single national trade single window linking the customs and tax administration, port authorities, the Ministry of Commerce and other agencies involved in its export and import processes.