(Yicai Global) Sept. 6 -- China's commerce ministry will support new energy vehicle manufacturers to export more cars abroad.

The MOFCOM will work with relevant authorities to help NEV makers to accelerate the building of overseas marketing and after-sales service networks, and enhance branding, Li Fei, assistant to the minister, said at a press conference yesterday.

The solutions involve finance and logistics. Qualified Chinese banks are encouraged to provide related consumer financial products abroad, Li said. Regulatory bodies are considering broadening export transportation channels and delivering NEVs via the China-Europe Railway Express, he added.

Electric cars could become a new growth driver for the country. From January to July, China's total import and export volume was CNY23.6 trillion (USD3.4 trillion), up 10 percent from a year earlier. However, demand is growing slower than before so the ministry has proposed new policies to further stabilize the development of foreign trade, Li said.

The MOFCOM will cooperate with relevant departments to support cross-border e-commerce platforms, logistics companies, and merchants to build warehouses, Li said. The nation is expected to add new pilot regions for cross-border shopping and procurement methods as soon as possible.

Moreover, the ministry aims to ease the ways foreign trade workers can travel to do business abroad. It encourages all regions to introduce pragmatic measures to actively support small and medium-sized enterprises to participate in trade exhibitions.

Import and export companies need to enhance their exchange rate risk management capabilities, Li said. The external environment is increasingly complex, and the number of risk factors affecting the yuan's foreign exchange rate is increasing. The MOFCOM, along with the People’s Bank of China and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, will encourage banking institutions to innovate and optimize their products and provide hedging and cross-border clearing services for more SMEs, he added.

Next, the ministry will refine the implementation measures with related departments to guide all regions to introduce targeted support measures to ensure that foreign trade enterprises can benefit from the policies as soon as possible, Li concluded.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi