The Ningbo Meeting of the China-CEEC Business Council was held in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, on May 21. Yu Jianlong, Vice Chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) and Vice Chairman of the China Chamber of International Commerce (CCOIC), attended and addressed the opening ceremony. The event also saw the participation of distinguished Chinese and foreign guests, including Jiang Yu, Special Representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for China-CEEC Cooperation Affairs; Ye Miao, Member of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Leadership Group of the People’s Government of Ningbo Municipality and Director of the Administrative Committee of the Ningbo Economic and Technological Development Zone; Staša Košarac, Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina; Atanas Zafirov, Deputy Prime Minister of Bulgaria; and Jagoda Lazarević, Special Envoy of the President of Serbia and Serbian Minister of Internal and External Trade.

In his speech, Yu Jianlong emphasized that China remains committed to pursuing high-quality development and expanding high-standard opening up, which will bring broader opportunities for cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European countries (CEECs). He stated that the CCPIT is ready to work with business associations and chambers of commerce in CEECs to further tap into new areas of trade growth, expand green cooperation in areas such as clean energy, and deepen integration in industrial and supply chains. He also welcomed businesses from CEECs to actively participate in the third China International Supply Chain Expo (CISCE).

Hosted by the China-CEEC Business Council China Secretariat, which is based at the CCOIC, the meeting was held under the theme “Innovation-Driven Development and Win-Win Cooperation.” The event brought together over 380 participants, including government representatives from China and CEECs, CEEC ambassadors to China, representatives from enterprise members of the China Council for the China-CEEC Business Council, Chinese and foreign entrepreneurs, experts, scholars, and media personnel. During the meeting, other events such as the Business Exchange Meeting of the China-CEEC Business Council & Annual Conference of the China Council, and the Business Matchmaking Event of the China-CEEC Business Council were also held.