Zhang Linchao, a 29-year-old piano teacher, left his studio in Beijing to travel to Shanghai with one specific goal in mind. The first China International Import Expo (CIIE), which opened in Shanghai on November 5, attracted a large number of attendees eager to see the numerous novel exhibits. Zhang was especially interested in the Steinway & Sons piano on exhibit which can play over 3,000 pieces of classical music automatically.

"We are working on smart pianos to teach students in a more convenient and efficient way. I hope this visit can bring some inspiration to our products for it is really a good chance to learn about advanced international products," Zhang told Beijing Review.

Following the just concluded 124th Canton Fair, China's oldest and largest trade fair that has been held every spring and autumn since 1957 and facilitates domestic enterprises going global, the CIIE further showcased China's efforts to widen opening up to share its development opportunities with the world, better meet domestic consumer demands and pursue industrial upgrading.

Over the past 40 years of reform and opening up, China has been committed to opening its door toward the global stage. Today, as the second largest economy in the world, the country resolves to maintain its status as a leading global trader despite the uncertainties caused by protectionism and trade tensions which have cast a shadow on global trade.

Prominent efforts

"China's previous policies were mainly launched to encourage exports and increase domestic employment and income, while boosting imports is a win-win move for both China and the rest of the world to share the fruits of China's development and its vast market," said Xu Hongcai, Deputy Chief Economist of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges.

The country is seeking higher-level opening up by boosting both inflow and outflow, improving the domestic business environment and furthering international cooperation. Once a global factory, China is now on track to become a major manufacturing and consumer power with more accessible markets.

In fact, China's imports have grown exponentially over the past 40 years. Official data show that China's goods imports increased from 18.7 billion yuan ($2.7 billion) in 1978 to 12.5 trillion yuan ($1.8 trillion) in 2017, with an average annual growth rate of 18.1 percent. Meanwhile, the country's service imports also saw an average annual growth rate of 16.8 percent from 1978 to 2017. China is now the world's second largest goods and services importer.

"China's economic growth and widening domestic market have increased the importance of its imports," said Dong Yan, a research fellow with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. According to Dong, China needs to open itself wider based on its 40-year experience and boost imports and exports in a dual-pronged manner to achieve higher-level opening up.

As part of its efforts to boost imports, China has strengthened its efforts to cut tariffs, facilitate customs clearance and meet growing domestic demands. Tariffs on a variety of goods closely related to consumers' daily life have been lowered. In terms of agricultural imports, tariffs on wines from Georgia and Chile which ranged from 14 to 30 percent have been reduced to zero. Import tariffs on manufacturing products such as certain Swiss watches have been halved.

Zhao Ping, an official with the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, said that improving imports can help meet Chinese consumer demands, since quality-first concepts and increasingly diversified demands from the expanding middle -income group have posed high requirements on domestic products and services. China needs to improve its imports to propel consumption upgrading and boost domestic demand.

"Apart from satisfying people's demands, improving imports can also drive industrial restructuring and upgrading in China, since a more open market can encourage the domestic service industry to seek transformation amid rising competition and raise the capacities of goods and services supplies. It can ultimately benefit domestic consumers," said Zhao.

Notwithstanding remarkable progress, China still sees room for improvement in terms of translating its vision of higher-level opening up into action. Li Gang, Vice President of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, said that China needs to further improve relevant systems and regulations to boost imports and draw references from global trade facilitation measures.

Computers on display at the Canton Fair in 1984 (above) and 2018 (XINHUA)

Fruitful trials

For wider opening up, China has also explored improving the domestic business environment, lowering the market threshold and developing pilot free trade zones (FTZs) with initial success. A report titled Doing Business 2019: Training for Reform released by the World Bank on October 31, revealed that China made a giant leap forward in terms of improving the business climate for small and medium-sized domestic enterprises, ranking among the top 10 most improved in the world in 2018. As the country undertook the largest number of reforms in the East Asia and Pacific region, China has moved up on the global list from 78 in 2017 to 46.

"China has made rapid progress in improving its business climate for small and medium-sized domestic enterprises in the past year. This progress, which now puts China among the top 50 economies in the world to do business, signals the value the government places on nurturing entrepreneurship and private enterprises," said Bert Hofman, the World Bank's Country Director for China.

In his keynote speech at the CIIE, Chinese President Xi Jinping said China will further protect the lawful rights and interests of foreign companies and crack down on intellectual property (IP) rights infringement. In addition, the credibility and efficiency of IP examinations will be increased and a punitive compensation system will be put in place to significantly raise the costs for offenders.

Through improving the domestic business environment, China will attract more high-quality products, capital and technologies, and provide new markets for other countries, said Yang Changyong, a researcher with the Beijing-based Academy of Macroeconomic Research.

Although China's manufacturing industry has been open to foreign investment across the board, its service industry is yet to be open wider to the global market in education, healthcare and culture. "The global service market has seen increasingly fierce competition among the major developed economies. In view of this, allowing more foreign capital to enter China's service industry can create opportunities for global investors and make it more competitive," said Dong.

China's bold trials on FTZs have also bore tangible fruits. Since 2013, when the Shanghai FTZ was established, the number has increased to 12, with the largest FTZ in south China's Hainan Province recently taking shape, providing new driving forces for higher-level opening up. According to recently released official announcements, China will expand the area of the pilot FTZ in Shanghai and strive to develop Hainan into a pilot free trade port.

"China has taken the initiative to widen its opening up against an anti-globalization trend. Such a move has demonstrated the resilience and potential of the Chinese economy," Xu said.

Copyedited by Rebeca Toledo

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