Beijing's Central Business District (CBD) has successfully attracted over ten thousand foreign-invested enterprises to establish operations, accounting for more than 30% of the city's total. Since the beginning of this year, the district has welcomed the opening of more than 20 flagship and debut stores from international and popular domestic brands, with a projected total of over 40 new high-quality first stores expected for the full year.
According to Pan Xingxing, Deputy Director of the Beijing CBD Administrative Committee, the area is now home to 125 regional headquarters of multinational corporations, representing nearly half of the city's total and highlighting its prominent status as a hub for headquarters economy. Its advantages in financial openness continue to expand, hosting nearly 1,200 licensed financial institutions. Among these, close to 300 are foreign-funded licensed financial institutions, constituting approximately 40% of the city's total.
The city of Beijing is currently advancing the construction of an international consumption center city with full effort. In the realm of international consumption, the CBD's trillion-yuan commercial district maintains robust development momentum. For three consecutive years, its card-based consumption has exceeded 120 billion yuan, with its overall consumption vitality ranking among the nation's highest.
This year, the district has already seen the establishment of over 20 flagship and debut stores from international and popular domestic 'Guochao' brands. It is anticipated that more than 40 new high-quality first stores will be added throughout the year. Supporting international services within the commercial district are also being continuously enhanced. There are now over 200 tax refund shops for overseas visitors, representing one-eighth of the city's total and more than half of Chaoyang District's total. The China World Mall has implemented the city's first batch of instant tax refund services for departing visitors, while major shopping centers comprehensively cover foreign-related services such as foreign card payments and currency exchange.
Concurrently, the district has created the city's first CBD temporary pedestrian street and consistently hosts featured events like coffee festivals, concerts, and sports seasons. The renewal and upgrade of commercial properties within the district are progressing steadily, fostering an increasingly vibrant atmosphere integrating commerce, culture, tourism, and sports.
Addressing frequent corporate needs such as foreign investment establishment and cross-border development, the Beijing CBD continues to refine an integrated, one-stop, full-cycle service system to precisely resolve bottlenecks and challenges for businesses. Presently, the Beijing CBD has established eight global business liaison stations in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hong Kong (China), Singapore, the Middle East, Germany, and the United Kingdom. This network enables coordinated domestic and international services, offering companies assistance with registration, cross-border cooperation, and industry matching.
In the field of intellectual property, the Intellectual Property Empowerment Station of the Beijing International Law and Business Integration Demonstration Zone has commenced operations. It provides businesses with integrated solutions covering rights application, portfolio management, and rights protection, accurately addressing pain points in intellectual property matters.
To meet corporate needs for cross-border travel and port clearance, a "Beijing Airport-CBD Service Center" has been established, effectively smoothing the "last mile" of port services. Looking ahead, the Beijing CBD will further develop a diversified commercial dispute resolution system, strengthen international professional mediation capabilities, and attract more arbitration institutions and commercial mediation organizations to set up operations.
It will integrate various professional resources including legal, auditing, and intellectual property services to build a regular supply-demand matching platform, precisely aligning with corporate commercial service requirements. Simultaneously, efforts will accelerate to advance the construction of the CBD Comprehensive Service Center. This center will integrate government service handling and foreign-related legal services, aiming to create a "one-stop" legal and business service platform.