(Bloomberg) -- China will come up with an action plan to attract foreign investment, an economic official said Monday, without offering any details about when it would be released or what it would contain. 

Beijing will promote the introduction of an action plan to attract foreign investment, according to Meng Wei, director-general of the National Development and Reform Commission’s legal department. The government will continue to cut the negative list which restricts the sectors foreign firms can invest in and scrap curbs for overseas investment in the manufacturing sector, she said during a press conference in the national capital.

Those statements repeat promises Beijing has been making since at least mid-2023, including when President Xi Jinping spoke in the US and promised “heart-warming” steps to attract foreign investors. In a separate press conference last month, Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao emphasized how much progress the government had made to improve the business environment and to listen to foreign firms’ complaints, with a separate ministry official repeating those comments today. 

So far those promises don’t look to be having much impact, with new investment dropping in most months last year and many overseas firms pessimistic on the outlook. Although US firms are more optimistic now than last year, almost half said they don’t plan to expand their investments this year, according to a recent survey. 

--With assistance from Yujing Liu.

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