The 7th China International Import Expo, held in Shanghai from Tuesday to Sunday, is one of the world’s second-largest economy’s efforts to promote high-level opening-up and share the dividends of its mega-large market with the world .

Compared to what it was seven years ago, when the first CIIE was held in China’s response to the rise of protectionism and unilateralism in the world, the global economy today faces monumental challenges due to major shocks, such as conflicts in Eurasia and the Middle East, the world has had to endure.

The charm and appeal of the Chinese market, reflected in the broad appeal of CIIE, which this year attracted around 3,500 exhibitors from 129 countries and regions, demonstrate that in a world of uncertainties, China remains determined to bring certainties and to help the whole world. the economy will recover by advancing high-level opening-up and working with like-minded countries to boost common development.

Not only the scale but also the quality of exhibitors participating in the CIIE have continued to improve since the first CIIE was held, as more and more new technologies, products and services have emerged over the years. which followed. A special attraction of this year’s exhibition is the series of new materials, artificial intelligence applications, information technologies and green products on display.

As a global manufacturing base, logistics hub, investment destination and very large market, China’s demands reflect trends in industry and global supply chains, making exposure difficult to ignore annual import tax, the largest of its kind in the world, for multinational companies. .

This explains why, despite “decoupling” and “de-risking” efforts by the US administration and some other Western governments, Western multinational corporations, which have a better understanding of the market than their governments, continue to engage with and benefit from China. from there. These companies, given their dependence on foreign profits, have not only refused to withdraw from the Chinese market, but have also expanded their operations and/or increased their investments in China. In fact, Western companies have been the main players in the CIIE from the start.

Yet the exhibition is not only a magnet attracting companies from developed and emerging market economies interested in the Chinese market, but also a place where companies, governments and organizations from less developed countries, including African countries can exhibit their agricultural and other products. products.

As part of China’s efforts to further open its economy to less developed countries, thereby contributing to the development of countries in the South, the CIIE has become a platform to boost common development and a global public good shared by the world. .

China is now the main trading partner of more than 150 countries and regions. The total value of China’s trade in goods has been the largest in the world for seven consecutive years, and the scale of its imports and exports of services has been the second largest for nine consecutive years. In 2023, China’s overseas direct investment amounted to $177.29 billion, accounting for 11.4% of the global total and ranking among the top three in the world for 12 consecutive years. These figures are a fitting response to the forces seeking to isolate China from the rest of the world in recent years.

The CIIE has shown the world that a growing number of stakeholders are realizing the enormous development opportunities and dividends that the Chinese market has to offer. More importantly, it proves that no country can ignore the benefits of the international division of labor and the strengthening, rather than disrupting, of global industry and supply chains – and that no country can take advantage of the construction of barriers to block the flow of production factors and the pursuit of deglobalization.