Editing Special economic zone (section)

==History==

The United States has long applied special economic rules to its outlying territories for the purpose of economic development. [[Economy of Puerto Rico#United States rule|Section 936 corporate tax exemptions for Puerto Rico]] began with [[Operation Bootstrap]] in the 1940s and ended in 2006.<ref>{{cite web |title=US Multinationals in Puerto Rico and the Repeal of Section 936 Tax Exemption for U.S. Corporations |author1=Zadia M. Feliciano |author2=Andrew Green |series=Working Paper Series |doi=10.3386/w23681 |date=August 2017 |publisher=National Bureau of Economic Research |url=https://www.nber.org/papers/w23681 |access-date=19 September 2024 |archive-date=19 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240919161109/https://www.nber.org/papers/w23681 |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Minimum wage in the United States#Territories|federal minimum wage for U.S. territories]] has in the past been lower than in the states, and as of 2024, [[American Samoa]] is still adjusting upward to the nation-wide minimum.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/state/minimum-wage/american-samoa |title=Federal Minimum Wage in American Samoa by Industry |access-date=19 September 2024 |archive-date=29 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240929140513/https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/state/minimum-wage/american-samoa |url-status=live }}</ref>

Modern SEZs appeared from the late-1950s in industrial countries. The first was in [[Shannon Airport]] in [[County Clare]], [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]].<ref name="economist.com">[https://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21647630-free-trade-zones-are-more-popular-everwith-politicians-if-not "Political priority, economic gamble"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180302225439/https://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21647630-free-trade-zones-are-more-popular-everwith-politicians-if-not |date=2 March 2018 }}. ''[[The Economist]]''. 4 April 2015</ref> Some tax-free jurisdictions such as the [[Cayman Islands]] offer technology companies a way to keep their IP offshore in a Special Economic Zone (see [[Cayman Enterprise City]]).

From the 1970s onward, zones providing labour-intensive manufacturing have been established, starting in [[Latin America]] and [[East Asia]]. The first in China following the opening of China in 1979 by [[Deng Xiaoping]] was the [[Shenzhen Special Economic Zone]], which encouraged foreign investment and simultaneously accelerated industrialization in this region.<ref name=":33">{{Cite book |last=Liu |first=Zongyuan Zoe |title=Sovereign Funds: How the Communist Party of China Finances its Global Ambitions |publisher=The Belknap Press of [[Harvard University Press]] |year=2023 |isbn=9780674271913 |pages= |doi=10.2307/jj.2915805 |jstor=jj.2915805}}</ref>{{Rp|pages=50–51}} These zones attracted investment from [[multinational corporation]]s<ref name="WorldBank2011"/> and allowed export-oriented Chinese businesses to respond quickly to demand in foreign markets.<ref name=":33" />{{Rp|page=50}} [[Special economic zones of China|China continues to maintain Special Economic Zones]] and certain open coastal areas. Most of China's SEZs are located in former [[treaty ports]] and therefore have symbolic significance in demonstrating a "reversal of fortunes" in China's dealings with foreigners since the [[century of humiliation]].<ref name=":33" />{{Rp|page=51}} Researcher Zongyuan Zoe Liu writes that "[t]he success of these cities as 'red' treaty ports represented another step in China's overall [[Reform and opening up|reform and opening-up]] plan while legitimizing the leadership of the CPC over the Chinese state and people."<ref name=":33" />{{Rp|page=51}}

Numerous [[African countries]] have set up SEZs in connection with China,<ref name=Tralac2013 /> including over the period 1990 to 2018 establishing SEZs in Nigeria (two), Zambia, Djibouti, Kenya, Mauritius, Mauritania, Egypt, and Algeria.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Murphy |first=Dawn C. |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1249712936 |title=China's rise in the Global South : the Middle East, Africa, and Beijing's alternative world order |date=2022 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=978-1-5036-3060-4 |location=Stanford, California |pages=177 |oclc=1249712936}}</ref> Generally, the Chinese government takes a hands-off approach, leaving it to Chinese enterprises to work to establish such zones (although it does provide support in the form of grants, loans,  and subsidies, including support via the [[China-Africa Development Fund|China Africa Development Fund]]).<ref name=":0" />  The [[Forum on China–Africa Cooperation|Forum on China-Africa Cooperation]] promotes these SEZs heavily.<ref name=":0" />

As of at least 2024, there is a trend of southeast Asian countries to develop and increase their SEZs.<ref name=":Han">{{Cite book |last=Han |first=Enze |title=The Ripple Effect: China's Complex Presence in Southeast Asia |date=2024 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-769659-0 |location=New York, NY}}</ref>{{Rp|page=55}} Since 2015, Thailand developed ten SEZs.<ref name=":Han" />{{Rp|page=55}} As of 2024, Indonesia has 13 SEZs, the Philippines has 12 SEZs, and Cambodia has 31 SEZs.<ref name=":Han" />{{Rp|page=55}}