The 2nd Global Digital Trade Expo kicks off in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, November 23, 2023. /CFP
The 2nd Global Digital Trade Expo kicked off on Thursday as the booming global digital trade emerges as a new bright spot in international trade.
With the theme of "Digital Trade, Global Access," the expo was jointly hosted by the provincial government of Zhejiang and the Ministry of Commerce from November 23 to 27, covering an exhibition area of 100,000 square meters.
The expo displays the full supply chain of digital trade with themes ranging from global companies, frontier technologies, and silk road e-commerce, showcasing the latest technological innovations such as large models, Web 3.0, and intelligent manufacturing, as well as popular e-commerce products.
The expo covers diverse industries such as information communications, digital security, finance, and health. A total of 20 global digital trade companies and 18 national digital trade companies are participating in this expo.
Digital trade is generally divided into two parts: data trading and digital ordering, according to Wang Shouwen, China's vice commerce minister at an earlier press briefing. "Digital trade is becoming a new trend in the development of international trade today and a new growth force in the future."
A visitor plays Chinese chess with a robot before the opening of the 2nd Global Digital Trade Expo in Hangzhou, November 21, 2023. /CFP
According to a report on China's development of digital trade released at the opening ceremony of the expo, in 2022, China's import and export volume of digitally deliverable services hit $372.71 billion, a year-on-year increase of 3.4 percent, reaching a record high.
China's total e-commerce sales reached 45 trillion yuan ($6,325 billion) in 2022, making it the world's largest and most dynamic e-commerce market. The global e-commerce retail sales are estimated to exceed $7 trillion in 2025, as stated in the report.
As of 2022, there are over 200 Chinese digital trade companies with a market value of $1 billion. These companies primarily focus on sectors including new energy, new media, and new technology, ranging from semiconductors, robots, and new materials to unmanned aerial vehicles, space communications, quantum technology, etc.
The report highlights that data exchange across borders is the foundation and key to digital trade. "Research shows that more than 90 percent of the current data was generated in the past decade, and the amount of data flowing across borders is growing exponentially." McKinsey predicts that every 10 percent increase in data flow will drive GDP growth by 0.2 percent.
The Global Digital Trade Expo (GDTE) is China's only national-level international professional exhibition with the theme of digital trade.