This photo taken on Sept. 1, 2023 shows an interior view of the China National Convention Center in Beijing, capital of China. (Xinhua/Hao Jianwei)
BEIJING, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- With the theme "opening up leads development, cooperation delivers the future," the China International Fair for Trade in Services 2023 (2023 CIFTIS) kicked off in Beijing on Saturday, showcasing a variety of new technologies and applications, which highlighted the digital transformation of global service trade.
In recent years, China's service trade maintained growth. Data show that in 2022, China's total import and export of trade in services amounted to nearly 6 trillion yuan, with an increase of 12.9 percent year on year and the scale reached a record high, ranking the second in the world for nine consecutive years, only after the United States.
With the acceleration of innovation in 5G, artificial intelligence (AI), big data, cloud computing and other technologies, the proportion of emerging service trade characterized by knowledge-intensive and technology-intensive has steadily increased, reported People's Daily.
In the first half of 2023, China's knowledge-intensive services trade accounted for more than 43 percent of the total service imports and exports. The 2023 CIFTIS will further highlight the leading role of innovation, open a window for the deep integration of digital technology and the real economy, and promote the accelerated digital transformation of global service trade.
-- New innovative and technological products rolled out
The 2023 CIFTIS is a great platform for showing new digital technologies. Special achievements in chip technology, quantum measurement and control, satellite remote sensing and other fields were unveiled, and new products in AI, financial technology, medical health and other fields were rolled out to the public.
In terms of smart life, the Bank of China (BOC) has created the "road of digital renminbi (RMB)". Intel Corp has launched a catering self-service settlement solution based on AI technology, and Jiangling Motors Group and WeRide have jointly launched China's first level 4 autonomous driving freight truck, providing intelligent services based on different life scenarios.
At the cultural tourism service exhibition, the integration of culture and technology showed beautiful scenery through different technical means including naked-eye 3D, satellite remote sensing, digital twin, cloud rendering, which has attracted many audiences.
In terms of medical treatment, Beijing Surgerii Robotics Company exhibited its surgerii’s single-port endoscopic surgical robot with Nitinol snake-shaped surgical instrument during the fair, which has been successfully applied in a number of clinical operations.
-- Leading edge of digital trade showcased
The full-link AI foreign trade products launched by the Alibaba.com have a number of functions such as commodity release and management, market analysis, customer reception, video chat with real-time translation, and enterprise management, which can help foreign trade enterprises sit at home and sell to the world through VR interactive scenes and other technologies, said a staff from the platform.
With the acceleration of innovation in technologies such as big data, cloud computing, Internet of Things and AI, the digitization process of China's service trade has further accelerated.
China's manufacturing industry has complete categories and long industrial chain with dense clusters of small and medium-sized enterprises, and the development of e-commerce has driven the development of a long chain and large volume of the domestic real economy, said Jiang Xiaojuan, professor of University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and former deputy secretary-general of the State Council.
Data show that in 2022, the import and export value of digitally-deliverable services in China reached 2.51 trillion yuan, with an increase of 7.8 percent year on year, ranking the fifth in the world.
The digital transformation of China's trade in serviceshas further improved its degree of knowledge and technology, and effectively spawned new models and new formats of service trade such as telemedicine and crowdsourcing, said Zhu Fulin, an associate researcher of Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation.
In recent years, the digital development of China's service exports has been relatively rapid, which is due to China's improving environment and policies for digital service trade, as well as the continuous exploration of innovative development models of service trade.
In April this year, China's Ministry of Commerce and other three departments selected the first batch of 12 national digital service export bases, aiming to duplicating their experience and practices to other regions of the country so as to improve the construction of new infrastructure, create the digital service industry ecology, optimize public services, and improve the calculation of digital service exports.
--New international cooperation fostered
2023 CIFTIS has attracted over 2,400 enterprises and representatives from 80 countries and international organizations, with the proportion of foreign participants exceeding 20 percent.
Deloitte, which has been attending the fair for five years, hopes to seize the opportunity of the CIFTIS and work with ecological partners to reconstruct a better future in terms of digital technology, innovation and talent, said Wang Tuoxuan, Managing Partner of Deloitte Northern Region.
At present, the international economic and trade rules are in the deep reconstruction, and the international rules of trade in services can no longer fully adapt to the new development needs. China should accelerate a new round of negotiations on trade in services, strive to reach consensus at an early date, and continue to expand the high-level institutional opening-up of trade in services, Zhu added.
At the same time, Zhu pointed out that under the drive of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) which is binding on the contracting parties and the sustainable development of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China's service trade cooperation with RCEP members and BRI participating countries has been deepened, and the future potential is infinite.
(Edited by Gao Jingyan with Xinhua Silk Road, gaojingyan@xinhua.org)
A single purchase
