Seven new free trade zones are slated for inauguration soon, with the government likely to commence operational assessment processes by 2020, according to local government officials.

As a testing platform for China's economic reforms, the zones aim to facilitate trade and investment by lowering entry requirements for new companies and cutting restrictions on capital flows.

The countdown has begun for the ceremony to inaugurate the FTZ in Sichuan, said an official from the province's department of commerce.