Commentary
SHANGHAI – The weeklong 4th China International Import Expo (CIIE) held its opening ceremony in Shanghai yesterday.
As an icon of China’s opening-up and international cooperation, the expo, which has been held every year since 2018, has promoted global development and prosperity, and contributed to shaping a brighter future for China and the world.
Bringing together global business opportunities, which have become much more valuable since the COVID-19 outbreak, the CIIE has grown into a one-stop platform for participants to showcase their products, look for partners and explore new markets.
That is why the event has enjoyed worldwide popularity and yielded fruitful results.
The previous three editions of the CIIE saw about US$201.6 billion worth of deals reached for intended purchases of goods and services. This year, the total exhibition area has been expanded to 366,000 square meters, with nearly 3,000 businesses from 127 countries and regions attending the event.
More than 80 percent of Fortune Global 500 and industry-leading companies from last year’s CIIE are returning for this latest edition, according to official data.
Meanwhile, openness and inclusiveness are distinct features of the CIIE. Since its debut, it has been a chorus of the whole world, instead of China’s solo show.
Both cutting-edge technologies from developed countries and agricultural goods produced by the developing world are welcome at the expo. Both big name multinationals and small start-ups can reap the benefits of participating in the event.
This year, more Belt and Road (B&R) countries, Central and Eastern Europe countries and the most underdeveloped countries, as well as an increasing number of small-and-medium enterprises will take part in the expo.
These facts are a strong testament to China’s determination to open its door wider, even facing the fierce headwinds of anti-globalization. China has always stood on the right side of history and the side of human progress, and endeavored to make economic globalization more open, inclusive, balanced and beneficial for all.
From pursuing creative ways to grow foreign trade, to improving its business environment and seeking deeper bilateral, multilateral and regional cooperation, China has walked the talk in sharing its development opportunities and building an open global economy.
Moreover, the CIIE has played a vital role in promoting global innovation and replacing old growth drivers for world development with new ones.
In addition to helping the participants grasp the latest innovation trend with novel products, the expo has also shown China’s enormous demand for high-quality merchandise.
With a population of 1.4 billion and a middle-income group that exceeds 400 million, China is the most promising market in the world. Total import into China is estimated to top 22 trillion dollars in the coming decade.
As the country is pursuing a new development pattern and trying to achieve carbon peaking and neutrality goals, the tremendous purchasing power of its large market has turned into a driving force for global companies to keep innovating to meet Chinese customers’ upgraded needs.
China’s active promotion of the transition to a modern green economy offers development opportunities for multinationals, said Yin Zheng, executive vice president of French multinational Schneider Electric.
The CIIE is living proof of China’s commitments to making the pie of the global market even bigger, strengthening the global mechanisms for benefits sharing and exploring new ways of international cooperation.
It is hoped that through the CIIE, the world can better understand China’s openness, inclusiveness and innovativeness. China, together with other countries, can create a more prosperous and brighter shared future. – AFP
