鞠立新：经济全球化的新韧性与中国引擎的强赋能 - 2021-05-25

The 2021 annual meeting of the Boao Forum for Asia was held as scheduled at a time when the changes over a century and the epidemic were intertwined, and the world economic recovery was picking up. President Xi Jinping delivered a keynote speech, pointing out the importance and new resilience of economic globalization. He once again made an ardent and loud call to the international community: We must have equal negotiation to create a win-win and sharing future; we must be open-minded and innovative to create a prosperous future; we must work together to create a healthy and safe future; we must uphold justice and create a future of mutual respect and learning. In the keynote speech, he profoundly stated that China will continue to build the "four partnerships" and play the "three roles", and vigorously empower the recovery of the world economy and the development of economic globalization.
Boao Is Booming: Economic Globalization Is Overwhelming and Unstoppable
President Xi Jinping has attended the Boao Forum for Asia and delivered keynote speeches five times. He has been vigorously advocating the peaceful cooperation and win-win development of the international community. He called for "the world to be fair, not domineering" and vigorously promoted the development of economic globalization.
About 600 years ago, Zheng He's seven voyages to the West and the three major Western navigators' transoceanic voyages created the "Age of Exploration" and opened the prelude to economic globalization; The three industrial revolutions since modern times and the economic globalization have all influenced and empowered each other; Today's fourth industrial revolution is reshaping and integrating the international industrial chain, supply chain, technology chain and value chain. Economic globalization is the objective law and important engine for the development of market-oriented economy, technological revolution, and industrial revolution, which cannot be stopped by any "reverse wave" of any force. In the era of economic globalization, openness and communication is an unstoppable historical trend. The artificial "walls" and "isolation" violate economic laws and market rules. Moreover, they harm others without bringing any benefit to yourself.
The world economy has been severely affected by COVID-19 during the past year. There has been a sharp decline, and protectionism, populism, unilateralism, and other anti-globalization riots are everywhere, which has exacerbated the "four major deficits" of governance, trust, development and peace facing the international community. However, the economic globalization is not going to be stopped by the will of a few Western politicians. It is still running, and there has been uplifting news.
According to data released by the World Trade Organization, in the third quarter of 2020, the global trade in goods decreased by 5.6% year-on-year. However, the international trade of computers and electronic components witnessed contrarian growth in the second and third quarters. This shows that the globalization of industrial chains and supply chains has already become a mighty trend, and economic globalization is still ongoing in turmoil. From the outbreak of COVID-19 to the beginning of 2021, WTO members have issued a total of 3350 related trade policies, of which 58% are policies for promoting trade, and 42% are restrictive trade policies. This also shows that although WTO members have been affected by COVID-19 to varying degrees and are facing huge economic difficulties, most of their policies are still formulated to contribute to the development of trade.
China Is Still The World's Biggest Engine for Advancing Economic Globalization
In the keynote speech, President Xi Jinping emphasized that the "Belt and Road" is a bright avenue for everyone to move forward hand in hand. We will further build closer open and inclusive partnerships in the health, connectivity, and green development sectors. China will continue to safeguard world peace, contribute to global development, and uphold the international order. Insightful westerners such as Adam Smith, the representative of Western classical economics, Samuelson, the representative of modern neoclassical comprehensive economics, and Krugman, the representative of contemporary new international trade theory, are all advocates of free trade theory and economic globalization. It is intriguing that mainstream public opinion in developed countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States has vigorously advocated free trade and economic globalization in history, but has then slipped into the quagmire of protectionism in the past decade or so.
Over the past 40 years of reform and opening up, China has unswervingly pursued and promoted free trade and economic globalization, and has made significant contributions in many fields such as world peace building, global development, international order, and green and sustainable development. In 2020, China's total foreign trade imports and exports reached RMB 32.16 trillion, with a year-on-year increase of 1.9%; In the first quarter of 2021, China's total imports and exports of goods trade increased by 29.2% year-on-year, of which exports increased by 38.7% year-on-year, imports increased by 19.3% year-on-year, and cross-border e-commerce increased significantly by 46.5%; China has become a huge engine for the recovery and development of international trade. In 2020, China's total imports and exports to countries along the "Belt and Road" was RMB 9.37 trillion, with an increase of 1%; For the first time, China and ASEAN were each other's largest trading partners. China absorbed USD 144.4 billion in foreign investment, with an increase of 4.5% year-on-year, making it the country with the world's largest foreign capital inflow; In the first quarter of 2021, China's absorption of foreign capital increased by 39.9% year-on-year. On the other hand, China will continue to actively develop foreign direct investment. In 2020, China's foreign non-financial direct investment totaled RMB 759.8 billion, equivalent to USD 110.2 billion. Non-financial direct investment in countries along the route was USD 17.79 billion, with an increase of 18.3% year-on-year. China has become a major foreign investor.
More importantly, although China has also been severely affected by COVID-19 and the world economic recession since last year, China has persisted in holding a series of major international public activities that promote economic globalization, such as China Beijing International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS), China Import and Export Fair, CIIE, and China-ASEAN Expo; China persisted in holding the Boao Forum for Asia, signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), completed the China-EU investment agreement negotiations, after which the China-EU Agreement on Geographical Indications officially came into effect, resolutely maintained and implemented The Paris Agreement, and is actively considering joining the "Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership". At the same time, China has made a lot of contributions to the international cooperation and joint fight against the epidemic in many aspects such as providing anti-epidemic materials to the international community, sending international medical expert teams, and providing vaccine; In addition, China has taken the initiative to expand its opening up to the outside world and creatively established "fast channels" for Chinese and foreign personnel exchanges, and "green channels" for material transportation; China has fully implemented the Foreign Investment Law of the People's Republic of China and its implementing regulations, and further reduced the negative list of foreign investment access; China has also expanded the pilot free trade zone, issued and implemented the overall plan for the construction of the Hainan Free Trade Port. This series of important measures to promote economic globalization, maintain international economic order, strengthen international cooperation in the fight against the epidemic, and actively expand opening up to the outside world have injected strong momentum into the recovery of the global economy and the strengthening of international cooperation and development.
(Author: Professor of Party School of Shanghai Municipal Committee, Part-time Researcher of China Center for Economic Studies, Fudan University, and Huaxia Research Institute)