Execs: Transition from manufacturing will help firms find new growth points

China's burgeoning trade in services, a trend championed by the annual China International Fair for Trade in Services, will help the country generate consensus on the need for global cooperation and attract foreign capital, said executives of foreign businesses and government officials on Monday.

China has been transitioning from a manufacturing-based economy to a services-led one; its fast-growing trade in services, propelled by CIFTIS, will facilitate and accelerate this transformation, they said.

The fair provides a valuable opportunity for businesses to interact with government stakeholders. It also helps China to showcase its strengths and aspirations in the services sector. Besides, companies can use the fair to explore new avenues for growth, said Dorothy Tembo, deputy executive director of the Geneva-based International Trade Centre, a multilateral agency that has a joint mandate with the World Trade Organization and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.

In contrast to goods trade, trade in services refers to the sale and delivery of intangible services, such as transportation, finance, tourism, telecommunications, construction, advertising, computing and accounting.

China's trade in services maintained stable growth during the first seven months of 2023, growing more than 8 percent year-on-year to 3.67 trillion yuan ($505.4 billion) in total value, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed.

"As China continues to promote openness and the growth of trade in services, we will leverage our strengths and expertise in the realm of international logistics by expanding our networks in the country, optimizing our portfolio of cross-border shipping services, and bolstering connections between China and global markets," said Eddy Chan, senior vice-president of US-based FedEx Express and president of FedEx China.

He said such efforts will contribute to the stability of the world's industrial and supply chains, helping facilitate the recovery and prosperity of the global economy and trade.

FedEx, a long-term CIFTIS participant, speeded up the delivery time for goods from the Chinese mainland to the United States, Canada, Mexico and more than 10 markets across the Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa regions in June. Those items can now be delivered within one to two days.

To enhance its market presence in trade in services, French multinational Schneider Electric SE — a four-time CIFTIS participant — introduced a number of software solutions during the event this year, to help domestic manufacturers cut carbon emissions and boost production efficiency.

With the emergence of the digital economy, related technologies are deeply integrating into the modern services sector, empowering China's real economy to accelerate its transformation and upgrade, said Xu Shaofeng, senior vice-president of Schneider Electric and head of medium voltage and services for the China market.

The convergence of digital and physical realms has become a crucial opportunity for the development of various industries. To advance this convergence, technology, especially software technology, and services are critical, he said.

Expressing similar views, Dominic Johnson, the United Kingdom's minister of state of the Department for Business and Trade, said the UK is ready to meet further market demand in China's services sector and vast consumer market.

Referring to the challenges the global economy has been facing, Johnson said: "The world will be a far better place with the UK and China collaborating and cooperating more closely together."

Thanks to its vast market and well-developed industrial system, coupled with favorable policies to expand opening-up, China saw foreign direct investment from the UK jump nearly 160 percent year-on-year in the first seven months of this year, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed.

Xiao Ran, general manager for China at British technology consulting company Thoughtworks Inc, said China's "Digital China" plan solidifies the country's position as the leader in the digital era.

"The emergence of generative artificial intelligence illustrates China's expanding capacity for innovation while also opening up sizable potential that plays to our advantages," said Xiao, adding the company, in the next step, will deploy more resources to enhance the business coordination between its offices in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, and Hong Kong to expand its businesses in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

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