Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Thursday that China stands ready to boost cooperation on international shipping with other countries.

Xi made the remarks in a congratulatory letter to the 2021 North Bund Forum, with the theme of analyzing the development and restructuring of international shipping based on openness and inclusiveness, innovation and reform, and win-win cooperation.

He said the shipping industry serves as an important guarantee for the development of global trade and a crucial bond of friendly contacts and exchanges between people worldwide.

It also plays a positive role in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, promoting trade recovery and stabilizing the industrial and supply chain since the pandemic started, said the Chinese president. 

China, he said, is ready to work with the rest of the world on a green, low-carbon and smart shipping industry.

He pledged China will also do its utmost to restore and ensure a smooth global industrial and supply chain and promote the healthy development of the industry, contributing to the building of a community with a shared future for humanity.

The three-day forum is being held in the North Bund, a pillar of Shanghai's international shipping business.

Shanghai holds third place in the international shipping center rankings in the 2021 Xinhua-Baltic International Shipping Center Development Index Report released in July.

(Cover: A port in Shanghai, China, October 24, 2021. /CFP)