China's joining would be booster for digital pact: China Daily editorial

Coming close on the heels of its application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, China's application to join the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement, which the Commerce Ministry announced on Monday, shows it is stepping up its efforts to integrate further into the Asia-Pacific economy.

The Digital Economy Partnership Agreement, which coordinates their policies on the digital economy, was signed by New Zealand, Singapore and Chile in June last year, and is the first of its kind in the world.

The pact covers almost all key sectors of the digital economy, ranging from facilitation of commerce and trade to personal information safety. Joining the pact can help remove many institutional obstacles for China's cooperation with the three countries in the digital economy, particularly in the fields of artificial intelligence and financial technology.

With its cross-border investment and trade being increasingly conducted via digital channels, China's participation in the pact will not only help it further open up to the world, but also greatly enhance the pact's demonstration effect in promoting governance of the digital economy.

Although the DEPA is of a small scale at present, it highlights the requirement for cooperation on rules-making for the digital economy and trade in digital services.

China's joining the DEPA would greatly enhance the pact's role in facilitating the interoperability between digital systems and the establishing of open standards.

It will also help the DEPA become a platform for countries to discuss and develop international rules for digital governance that respect the interests of all sides, and foster an open, just and non-discriminatory environment for digital development.

With the fledgling pact set to grow bigger and more influential — Canada has also expressed an interest in joining — it can explore and standardize the rules for the digital economy, helping to resolve some of the issues caused by cross-border data flows, localized digital storage, digital security, privacy and anti-trust investigations.

In his speech via video link to the G20 Summit in Rome on Sunday, President Xi Jinping stressed the great importance China attaches to international cooperation on the digital economy, saying it stands ready to work with all parties for the healthy and orderly development of the digital economy.

China's application to join the DEPA clearly demonstrates its willingness and desire to strengthen coordination with other countries in this regard.