Shanghai free trade zone nears final approval

Shanghai is close to getting the final stamp of approval for its biggest business plan ever. The 10-year plan to develop the city's eastern part into a free trade zone is the first of its kind in China.

The Shanghai free trade zone, as it is temporarily called, is almost the same size as Macao, and its trade volume topped 100 billion US dollars last year. The free trade area will have its own rules for commerce and finance. This is the city's most ambitious plan to transform its economy--in the wake of slowing growth in manufacturing.

The ongoing Disneyland project, which is expected to complete in 2016, is also in the same area. The free trade zone is ready for submission to the State Council later this month for the official approval, and the project may start operation in the second half of this year.