Seizing new global opportunities for win-win cooperation: advancing Shanghai as a global innovation and business Hub - 2024-11-04
The China International Import Expo (CIIE), the world's first import-themed national-level expo, has emerged as a critical symbol of China’s commitment to high-standard opening up since its inaugural event in 2018. The upcoming 7th CIIE in 2024 is poised to attract global attention once again, embracing the theme "New Era, Shared Future." This year, the CIIE will host participants from 152 countries and regions and feature an expansive exhibition area exceeding 420,000 square meters, solidifying its role as a vital platform for international economic cooperation and exchange. The expo is instrumental in enhancing Shanghai's ongoing efforts to deepen its high-level institutional opening-up in alignment with national requirements, while also reinforcing its status as a global innovation and business hub.
I.The Hongqiao International Economic Forum Amplifies the "Voice of Shanghai," Promoting Global Sharing of China's Development Opportunities
The 7th Hongqiao International Economic Forum (HQF), an important part of the China International Import Expo (CIIE), carries the theme "High-Standard Opening up for Universally Beneficial and Inclusive Economic Globalization." The forum features the main forum along with 19 parallel sessions organized under the "1+4" sections, exploring new trends in the global economy and reinforcing international economic and trade cooperation. As the global trade governance structure undergoes transformation, there is an urgent need for countries to establish international dialogue platforms. The Hongqiao International Economic Forum, with its diverse themes and extensive international participation, serves as a multi-dimensional platform of international communication for amplifying the "Voice of Shanghai," showcasing the city’s image of openness and collaboration in a globalized context. As a barometer of international economic and trade cooperation, the HQF brings together global entrepreneurs and scholars, creating a vital stage for countries to share in China's development opportunities.
According to statistics from the General Administration of Customs, the total value of China’s goods trade in the first three quarters of 2024 reached 32.33 trillion yuan, reflecting a year-on-year increase of 5.3%. China's import and export trade encompasses all segments of the global value chain, covering energy, machinery, consumer goods, and services. In the context of domestic-international dual circulation, the CIIE has facilitated the deep integration of Shanghai’s diverse industries, including exhibitions, commerce, tourism, culture, and entertainment, significantly enhancing the influence of the "Shanghai Shopping" brand. As a key hub for global procurement, investment, and exchange, the CIIE showcases Shanghai’s vibrant international business and cultural landscape, creating a unique "Shanghai experience" and bolstering the city’s overall appeal.
The CIIE has solidified its role as an essential platform for global innovation display, international trade promotion, and economic growth. This year’s expo has attracted exhibitors from over 70 countries and international organizations, including first-time participants such as Norway, Slovakia, and Benin. The total exhibition area for participating companies has reached 270,000 square meters, with significant representation from enterprises based in the United States, Japan, and Germany. As a vital medium for shaping and promoting Shanghai's international image, the CIIE will further enhance the provision of globally shared international public goods and services, demonstrating Shanghai's openness, inclusiveness, technological innovation, and efficient management. This initiative aims to strengthen the recognition of Shanghai as a global trade hub, positioning the city as a new benchmark for high-standard opening up while promoting the global sharing of China’s development opportunities.
II.Optimizing the Business Environment and Upgrading Urban Functions for a High-Quality Leap Towards a Global Commercial Destination
The 7th China International Import Expo (CIIE) presents a significant opportunity for Shanghai to optimize its business environment, enhance urban functions, and facilitate the concentration of high-end resources. Through strategic top-level design, Shanghai has enacted effective reforms in institutional innovations such as administrative approvals and customs clearance. Leveraging the CIIE’s "Government Online-Offline Shanghai" services, multinationals can swiftly register and clear customs, thereby reducing operational costs and boosting foreign investment confidence in the city. The expo has also stimulated the development of the exhibition economy, providing valuable insights for the growth of modern services and the digital economy. Shanghai is gradually establishing a dual promotion mechanism of "exhibition economy + urban function enhancement," which improves the competitiveness of financial services, logistics management, and commercial support systems, driving the transformation of traditional manufacturing into an international commercial hub. As the permanent venue for the CIIE, the Hongqiao International Central Business District has become a destination attracting numerous regional headquarters of multinational companies and high-end manufacturing enterprises. This development has facilitated a high level of integration among exhibition, business, and commercial functions.
The coordinated development of the free trade zone and the CIIE has established a hotspot for institutional innovation through measures such as free trade and tax incentives. This institutional advantage has accelerated the concentration of high-end industrial resources in Shanghai and fostered collaborative development across upstream and downstream industrial chains. By 2024, the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone has witnessed the establishment of 84,000 new enterprises and over 14,000 new foreign investment projects. Thanks to the CIIE, Shanghai has implemented strategies for "targeted investment attraction" and "industry chain investment attraction," drawing in substantial high-end resources and forming a relatively complete ecological chain to promote innovative collaboration and technology sharing in sectors such as high-end manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, finance, and technology.
III.Empowering Global Intelligent Manufacturing with New-Quality Productive Forces and Supporting the Digital and Diverse Development of the CIIE
"New-quality productive forces," driven by technological innovation, intelligent manufacturing, and digital technologies, is transforming the manufacturing sector from traditional models to more efficient, intelligent, and sustainable practices. This trend lies at the heart of global "intelligent manufacturing." The 7th CIIE will focus on promoting high-quality development in this context, emphasizing the advancement of emerging industries toward higher-end, smarter, greener solutions. As a platform for showcasing cutting-edge technologies and products, the CIIE will feature exhibitions across various fields, including future networks, biotechnology, deep-sea and aerospace exploration, and artificial intelligence. For the first time, a dedicated zone for new materials will be created within the Intelligent Industry & Information Technology Exhibition Area, while the Automobile Exhibition Area will spotlight future industries such as autonomous driving, low-altitude economy, and new energy. With its growing international influence, the CIIE is poised to accelerate digital transformation, attracting participation from a wider array of industries and injecting new momentum into global trade.
By leveraging the CIIE, Shanghai is gradually building a global innovation network and deepening collaboration with international innovation enterprises. Through the CIIE's "window effect," Shanghai has actively promoted international technology transfer and the exchange of innovative resources and formed close partnerships with multinationals and innovative SMEs. This facilitates the conversion and application of scientific achievements. These collaborative opportunities provide local enterprises and innovation institutions in Shanghai with diverse avenues for cooperation, supporting their development in the global market. For instance, Siemens has utilized the CIIE as a bridge to establish an intelligent manufacturing innovation center in Shanghai and start technical collaboration with local businesses and universities, thereby bolstering Shanghai's advancements in intelligent manufacturing and industrial digitization. In such sense, the CIIE serves as an ideal gateway for international companies to enter the Chinese and broader Asian markets and offers fresh perspectives for building a global innovation ecosystem. Looking ahead, the key to advancing intelligent manufacturing and digital transformation lies in how to foster deeper cooperation and mutual benefits between foreign and local enterprises through the CIIE.
The author is Li Shuhan, Institute of Literature, Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences.
Source: Touch Shanghai
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