Exclusive | Shanghai free-trade zone may be extended to cover Pudong
Central government plans to first focus on specific areas for the scheme amid concern about financial industry risks and hot money inflows
The central government may eventually expand its proposed Hong Kong-like free-trade zone in Shanghai to cover the entire Pudong district, government sources say.
The entire Pudong district covers 1,210.4 sq km.
Government sources familiar with the plan told the South China Morning Post that the government initially considered declaring that the new free-trade zone would take in all of Pudong.
"Officials and scholars discussed the possibility of making the entire Pudong New Area a new free-trade zone," said one of the sources, referring to the official name of the district.
They later agreed to focus on smaller areas within the district as they wanted to make sure that the launch would be smooth and successful, said the source, who declined to be named because of political sensitivities.