Global openness edged down in 2024, but China continued to move in the opposite direction, expanding its engagement with the world despite mounting protectionist and geopolitical pressures, according to a new report released on Wednesday.

The World Openness Report 2025, unveiled at the 8th Hongqiao International Economic Forum in Shanghai, showed that the World Openness Index slipped to 0.7545 last year, marking a slight decline from 2023 and extending a broader slowdown since 2008.

The report, jointly compiled by the Institute of World Economics and Politics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the Research Center for the Hongqiao International Economic Forum, tracked the openness of 129 economies across trade, investment, people-to-people exchanges and cultural links.

It said the global openness level "remains in a phase of in-depth adjustment" as unilateralism, supply chain realignments and security concerns reshape globalization.

China stood out as a rare exception. Its openness index rose to 0.7634 in 2024, up from 0.5891 in 1990, placing it among the world's most open economies. The country ranked 38th globally, unchanged from a year earlier, but recorded steady gains even as most advanced economies tightened.

The report noted that economic and cultural openness both contracted last year, while social openness increased, reflecting the resilience of cross-border connections among people and services.

Emerging markets continued to outpace developed ones. Openness among developing economies rose in 2024, while that of advanced economies fell further, underscoring what the report called "Southern vitality" versus "Northern sluggishness."

The authors said areas such as digital trade, green development and supply chain cooperation are emerging as new pillars of openness, offering opportunities for more inclusive growth even with the rise of protectionist policies.