BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese customs authorities on Tuesday said they had launched 16 initiatives to optimize the country's business environment.

The measures will help stabilize social expectations further and boost confidence in foreign trade, according to a press briefing of the General Administration of Customs (GAC).

Efforts have been made to improve the efficiency of cross-border logistics, support the import of advanced technology equipment and special items, promote the import and export of important agricultural and food products, facilitate export tax rebates, enhance the upgrading of trade processing, and optimize the supervision of border trade, according to the GAC.

In 2022, it introduced 23 measures to stabilize foreign trade, providing solid support to bring the scale of China's foreign trade to a record high, according to GAC official Wu Haiping.

In its next step, the GAC will focus on the implementation of the 16 new initiatives, urge local customs offices to introduce supporting measures, devise targeted solutions for difficulties faced by enterprises, and strengthen the implementation of and feedback concerning the policies, Wu said.