Uae to crack down on abuse of wage subsidy scheme

ACCA accountancy body strengthens China partnership

A leading UK accountancy body is collaborating with Chinese partners to drive high-standard, sustainable international cooperation through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the global infrastructure development policy adopted by the Chinese government to invest in more than 150 countries and international organisations.

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) believes the BRI provides significant opportunities for the accounting profession, according to chief executive Helen Brand.

“Professional accountants with their ethical perspectives, capabilities and entrepreneurial vision will be among those seeing opportunities as a result of the BRI,” she said. “There will be a significant need for not just compliance work, but advisory and consulting work, as well as tax and audit skills.”

Brand said that professional accountants play an integral role in feasibility assessments, risk management and investor protections related to BRI infrastructure projects. “By taking an active part in BRI projects, professional accountants will help the projects maintain high standards, high quality and high rewards, thus contributing to the sustainable development of BRI cooperation,” Brand told China Daily.

ACCA is helping professional accountants to seize opportunities offered by the BRI, Brand said. In May, it signed an agreement with the China International Contractors Association to cooperate on training international accounting talent for China’s overseas contracting projects.

The CEO added: “ACCA’s global reputation for qualifications, curricula and the UK’s higher education and training have made these particularly strong areas for current and future collaboration.”

Brand said that “ACCA is working to further enhance its influence in China and meet the rising demand for finance and accounting talent with expertise in the digital field amid the rapid development of the country’s digital economy and artificial intelligence technology.”

She added: “Digital transformation will also be a focus of ACCA in the next few years. ACCA will provide more professional support and training in this area to adapt to future changes in work.”

China’s digital economy – the world’s second-largest – was worth 50.2 trillion yuan ($7.04 trillion) in 2022, representing 41.5% of the country’s GDP, official data showed.

Brand said digital skills will be “cornerstone capabilities” for finance professionals of the future as emerging AI tools will enable finance teams to reconfigure how they work and share information as well as help accountants to better position themselves as data-centric advisers.

“[AI] is an area of huge importance to us. We are working hard to ensure that we provide opportunities for members to increase their skills and that we keep the ACCA qualification up to date for our students as AI and other technologies develop,” she added.

ACCA has around 241,000 members in 178 countries and regions, and the number is expected to hit 250,000 this year as more accountants qualify in key countries such as China.

 

Government pledges more support for small business

China will continue to provide favourable loan support for small and micro businesses, and loans to ensure the delivery of pre-sold homes, according to the country’s central bank.

The People’s Bank of China said support will be ramped up for key areas and weak links such as inclusive finance, green development, technical innovation and infrastructure construction.

At its regular second-quarter meeting, the bank said that while the domestic economy was picking up, there was still a lack of demand.

The central bank said it would continue to implement a prudent monetary policy, while strengthening counter-cyclical adjustment to support the real economy.

It said that “efforts to deepen market-based exchange rate reforms will continue in order to keep the renminbi’s exchange rate generally stable at an appropriate and balanced level”.

The meeting also called for “solid work in ensuring the delivery of pre-sold homes, people’s livelihoods and stability, and in promoting the steady and healthy development of the real estate market”.