On the morning of September 7th, the Belt and Road Forum on Services Trade Cooperation of the 2020 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) opened at the China National Convention Center, Beijing. This forum was hosted by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), organized by the China Association of Trade in Services (CATIS), and themed “Development, Transformation and Upgrade of Trade in Services Under the COVID-19 Epidemic”. Topics for discussion revolve around “Belt and Road” and digital trade, and the whole export of “service +” supported by digital technology, and led by high-level services.

Zhang Shenfeng, Vice Chairman of the CCPIT, attended and addressed the opening ceremony of the forum. He stated that remarks made by President Xi Jinping at the Global Trade in Services Summit have pointed out a clear direction to deepen the international cooperation in services trade, and injected new impetus to the development and prosperity of the global trade in services. In every country and region, trade in services plays an important role in transforming economic development mode, upgrading industries, and promoting sustainable development. For the high-quality development of trade in services in China, countries alongside the Belt and Road and other countries and regions, we should act in the spirit of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, advancing the establishment of mechanisms and platforms for the trade in services; forge ahead in an innovative and pioneering way, actively fostering new business forms and new models for the trade in services; carry on optimizing the international business environment to further liberalize and facilitate trade in services, and jointly promote the cooperation and development of trade in services in the BRI region or even the whole world.

Long Yongtu, Consultant of the CATIS, Deputy Minister of the former Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation of China, and former Secretary General of Boao Forum for Asia; Jorge Chediek, Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General on South-South Cooperation and Director of the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation; Zhou Chenghu, Head of the CATIS and Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and other guests attended the forum and delivered keynote speeches.

Long Yongtu said that the digital economy is impressive for its prominent advantages amid the pandemic. For the digital economy, data is its most crucial production factor, modern information networks are its most important carriers, and digital communication technology is its major driving forces. The digital economy is also a population economy, a transformation economy, an inclusive economy, and an open economy. New technologies like the internet, big data, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence are changing China’s economic structure deeply and accelerating the transformation and upgrade of traditional industries. Rapid development in the digital economy, especially in the digital trade will be conducive for China to build closer relationships with the BRI en-route countries.

Jorge Chediek said that the global trade has been hit severely by the COVID-19 outbreak, so we must strengthen cross-industry and cross-domain cooperation to jointly cope with the predicament of the economic slowdown. He hoped that more cities including those in the BRI en-route countries can join the South-South Cooperation (SSC), establish more partnerships, and enhance global cooperation. The SSC will leverage digital technologies such as the internet, big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence to build more platforms for cross-border trades and e-commerce, and further promote the sustainable development of the BRI and the common development of the world. The Chinese government, as an active supporter of the SSC, is promoting the sustainable development of the BRI and has made important contributions to the SSC and the rising of developing countries.

On the forum, a high-level dialogue “Asking for Direction” was held. Long Yongtu presided this dialogue. Panelists were Zhao Xiaoyu, former Vice President of China Development Bank and Asian Development Bank; Ma Xiaoli, Vice President of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China; Xu Ningning, Executive Director of the China-ASEAN Business Council; and Ahmad Farooq, Pakistani Minister/Deputy Chief of Mission to China. They shared many insights and constructive opinions in the dialogue’s three paragraphs, “the Coming Era of Digital Transformation,” “Digital Trade and Data Empowerment,” and “Digital Trade and New Opportunities for Development”, covering extensive topics including the “digital transformation in banks,” “the EU’s digital trade development,” “China-ASEAN Year of Digital Economic Cooperation,” “China-Pakistan digital trade cooperation,” and “contributions of the CHINA RAILWAY Express”.

The Research Report on the Development of China's International Services Trade Industry was released on the forum, and related projects’ signing and launching ceremonies were held as well.