I'm Robert Lawrence Kuhn and here's what I'm watching: The future of the Belt and Road Initiative, BRI, in catalyzing an "open world economy," including further opening of the Chinese economy — following the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation to celebrate the BRI's 10th anniversary. In President Xi Jinping's keynote speech, he stressed "openness and inclusiveness" and reaffirmed the BRI's grand vision: "enhancing connectivity, infrastructure, trade, financial and people-to-people connectivity,injecting new impetus into the global economy, creating new opportunities for global development, and building a new platform for international economic cooperation."
President Xi announced eight major steps China will take to support high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. Here I focus on the second: supporting an "open world economy," underscored by China removing all restrictions on foreign investment in its own manufacturing sector — a surprise opening-up breakthrough that will enable foreign companies to enter new markets in China never before accessible. In addition, China pledged to follow international high-standard economic and trade rules, further promote high-level opening-up of cross-border service trade and investment,expand market access for digital products,and enhance the development of state-owned enterprises, the digital economy, intellectual property rights and government procurement.
Exemplifying China's domestic opening up, the 6th China International Import Expo, being held in Shanghai, promotes the import of global high-quality products and trade. So far, it has attracted more than 3,400 exhibitors and about 400,000 professional visitors, returning to pre-epidemic levels, and including more than 100 executives from Fortune 500 companies.Attending are the world's top 15 vehicle brands, top 10 industrial electrical companies, top 10 medical equipment companies, 3 mining giants, 4 major grain merchants, and 5 major shipping companies. More than 400 new products, new technologies, and new services are displayed, featuring high-end equipment, green environmental products, and biotechnology. Kirin fruit from Ecuador and pineapples from Benin will enter the Chinese market. Moreover, to stimulate imports, tax rates on imported goods will be reduced further and cross-border E-commerce will be encouraged. China calls its Import Expo "an international public good shared by the world," demonstrating multilateralism and implementing, what China calls "a community with a shared future for mankind."
China is not opening up further due to foreign pressure, nor is the country motivated entirely by altruism. China's opening up increases foreign competition, which stimulates good Chinese companies to up their game, eliminates poor companies, and drives reform of state-owned enterprises — all of which benefit Chinese consumers.
Foreign companies are pleased but many remain cautious, not easily forgetting policy shifts and targeted investigations due to suspected illegal endeavors. While China's use of foreign capital in the first eight months of 2023 fell by 5.1 percent year-on-year, the new measures are designed to signal that China's door to the world will open wider and wider. Officials say that in today's complex world economy, China is more determined and confident in opening up.
We await how the new measures are actually implemented, and how foreign companies respond.
I'm keeping watch. I'm Robert Lawrence Kuhn.
Script: Robert Lawrence Kuhn
Editors: Yang Yutong, Liang Zhiqiang
Designer: Qi Haiming
Producer: Sun Lan
Chief Editor: Li Shouen
Supervisors: Xiao Jian, Adam Zhu
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