Xi Jinping pledges to open Chinese markets wider, expresses full commitment to WTO

Chinese President Xi Jinping, on Thursday, made fresh pledges to open his country’s markets wider as it has fully delivered on its accession commitments to World Trade Organisation (WTO). Speaking at the opening of China International Import Expo 2021, Jinping shunned protectionism and unilateralism and stated that economic globalism was essential to ‘take humanity to a better future”. Notably, China is one of the most open countries in Asia and is the second-largest economy in the world.

“China supports the reform of the World Trade Organization in the right direction, the inclusive development of the multilateral trading system, and the legitimate rights and interests of the developing members,” Xi was quoted as saying by Xinhua. .

"We must stay on top of the prevailing trend of economic globalization, and support countries around the world in opening up wider while rejecting unilateralism and protectionism. This is significantly important if we are to take humanity to a better future,"  he added.

New Pledges by Jinping

On Thursday, the communist leader made several pledges including his determination to join the  Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement. In Shanghai, he told business leaders that China will take an ‘active’ attitude to negotiations on issues such as digital economy, trade and environment, industrial subsidies and state-owned enterprises amongst others. Additionally, the country will share more and more market opportunities with the rest of the world and encourage South-South cooperation.

In a bid to make the country more open, Jinping said, his administration will slash the list of negatives for foreign investments as well as expand openings in the fields of telecommunication, healthcare and other services in an orderly fashion. Furthermore, he said that “China will firmly uphold the common interests of the world.” Apart from economic alterations, he also pledged to participate in global efforts to tackle the climate crisis, safeguard food and energy security etc. Xinping also said in the coming months, China will bolster its aid to other countries under the UN’s South-South cooperation framework.

(Image: AP/WTO/Twitter)