The China International Fair for Trade in Services, or CIFTIS, held a roadshow in London on Friday to promote its 2025 edition to businesses in the United Kingdom.

More than 60 delegates from sectors including trade, finance, and technology attended the promotional event, eager to learn about the national-level trade fair, co-hosted by the Ministry of Commerce and the People’s Government of Beijing since 2012.

The 2025 CIFTIS is scheduled to take place next September in Beijing.

The 2024 fair, which concluded in September, attracted over 2,000 enterprises to participate offline, more than 20 percent of which were international companies, and achieved some 1,000 practical outcomes, according to the People’s Government of Beijing.

Li Peng, an economic and commercial counselor of the Chinese embassy in the UK, said CIFTIS serves as an important platform for Sino-British economic cooperation, and the UK has been an old friend of CIFTIS.

The UK was the guest country of honor at the 2023 CIFTIS, assembling its largest-ever delegation for the fair that year, with more than 70 events hosted at its 240-square-meter national pavilion, he highlighted.

“China-UK economic partnership has always been the ballast and propeller for China-UK relations,” he said. “China-UK annual bilateral trade, including the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, has surpassed 110 billion pounds ($139 billion), and that two-way investment stock is more than 130 billion pounds. China-UK cooperation has played a tangible role in promoting the economic development of both countries, bringing real benefits to people of both sides.”

Li Zhongshuang, a first-level inspector of the Beijing Commerce Bureau, said China, by hosting CIFTIS, aims to share the development opportunities of trade in services with all parties, make new contributions to enhancing global trade, and inject new momentum into the recovery of the world economy.

Li also said that as Beijing serves as a gateway for China’s opening up, the city is committed to enhancing convenience for foreign businesses and residents. Measures include further developing the international service platform for foreigners in Beijing, improving foreign investment regulations, and more.

Xia Bin, deputy general manager of the Bank of China London Branch, said the branch has been an active participant and supporter of CIFTIS.

“At the 2023 CIFTIS event, the London branch proudly showcased the incredible growth story of Chinese enterprises in the UK—a number that has risen from 50 to 30,000—creating over 100,000 jobs and contributing significantly to the local economy,” he highlighted.

“Our role at Bank of China London Branch as businessmen and bankers is to navigate a complex world to develop business and build commercial connections,” he added.

A lineup of prominent speakers, including Charles Bowman, former lord mayor of London; Nick Charles, head of membership and community relationships at the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Paulo Flores, director at Zaha Hadid Architects; and Harriet Radcliffe, senior account manager at London Tech Week, shared knowledge on China-UK cooperation in the service sector.

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