Thanks to the FTZ's further opening up policies inbound and outbound investment is thriving in the Shanghai free trade zone (FTZ), located in the city's Pudong New Area, Pudong Times reported on Oct 18.

The FTZ has carried out a series of innovative measures to attract foreign investors and help Chinese investors to expand business overseas.

The contractual foreign investments reached over 58 billion dollars from April 2015, when the FTZ was expanded by incorporating Jinqiao, Zhangjiang, and Lujiazui areas, to August 2016.

One example is the opening up of the service sector, which brought in top international service institutions in Western-style chef training, medical treatment, and other areas.

In the first five months of 2016, outbound investments by Chinese companies totaled over 13.5 billion dollars, an increase of 35 percent year-on-year.

The increase is in part attributable to a more convenient procedure by which companies that want to invest overseas can submit their applications at Pudong's commerce commission and obtain the certificate in three days.

An outbound investment service alliance was launched last September to better help local Chinese enterprises go global, providing them with consulting, project recommendation, financing, insurance and other services.