Digital Trade Gains Momentum

The Second Global Digital Trade Expo is to be held in Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang Province, from November 23 to 27. The expo will be attended by more than 30 international organizations including the World Trade Organization, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, and Smart Africa, an alliance tasked with implementing Africa’s information and communications technology agenda.

Dozens of leading digital trade companies at home and abroad will also attend the expo, where they plan to exhibit new products for communications, digital security, the Internet of Things (IoT), digital finance and digital healthcare, with more than 100 products to make their debut. More than 800 international purchasers will be present, according to organizers.

The enthusiasm shown for this expo is a good example of the growing appeal of China’s digital economy. This term refers to the economic activity that results from billions of everyday online connections among people, businesses, devices, data and processes.

The Outline of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) for National Economic and Social Development and Vision 2035, a document that clarifies China’s strategic intentions and the government’s priorities adopted in March 2021, calls for accelerating digital development and building a digital China. During the Group of 20 Rome Summit in October 2021, China applied to join the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement, a new type of trade partnership agreement signed in June 2020 by Chile, New Zealand and Singapore. The agreement seeks to bolster digital trade by regulating issues related to the digital economy, including digital inclusion, data flows and protection, and artificial intelligence (AI). Negotiations are currently under way.

Moreover, China inaugurated the National Data Administration on October 25. The new agency is charged with coordinating the integration, sharing, development and application of data resources and helping grow China’s digital economy.

In order to facilitate global digital trade, China has undertaken many innovations and practical measures, such as a pilot zone of Silk Road e-commerce cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative, proposed by China in 2013 to boost connectivity along and beyond the ancient Silk Road routes, and new projects to increase cross-border data flows and digital service market access. China is revving up innovation in online education, telemedicine and professional services involving digital services. It has also put in place measures to encourage innovation in digital technologies like cloud computing, AI and blockchain technology.

The country is taking the lead in the world’s digital economy, particularly in digital trade. According to the report Digital Trade: Development and Cooperation 2023, issued by the Development Research Center of the State Council, in 2022, global digital services trade was valued at $3.82 trillion, of which China accounted for 37.2 percent, followed by the United States at 24.4 percent. The Digital China Development Report (2022) released by the Cyberspace Administration of China showed China’s digital economy was valued at 50.2 trillion yuan ($6.86 trillion) in 2022, a nominal increase of 10.3 percent year on year and accounting for 41. 5 percent of its GDP.

Thanks to increasing integration of digital technologies with the real economy, digital trade is gaining momentum. In 2022, online games developed by Chinese companies raked in $17.35 billion in the overseas market. China ranked 11th in the Global Innovation Index 2022, released by the World Intellectual Property Organization, while its invention patents authorization in terms of AI, IoT and quantum information ranked first.

Digital trade has a big role to play in optimizing foreign trade mix. In this context, the Global Digital Trade Expo is creating a platform for its further development and increased openness of the world economy as a whole.