Experts confident in globalization progress

Facing headwinds, the process of globalization will still continue in the long term despite twists and turns, officials and economists said at a session of the Hongqiao International Economic Forum held on Saturday during the ongoing fifth China International Import Expo.

They made the remarks following the publication of the World Openness Report 2022, saying that China's push for high-level opening-up will not only benefit it but also other countries.

On the overall level, the world openness index continued to show a downward trend in 2020, according to the report, which was jointly released at the session on Saturday by the Institute of World Economics and Politics under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the Research Center for the Hongqiao International Economic Forum.

Wang Shouwen, vice-minister of commerce and China international trade representative, said in a video message that world openness is at a crossroads as economic globalization faces headwinds such as rising unilateralism and protectionism.

Openness is the essential way for the world to achieve prosperity and development, he said, adding that, "We should expand opening-up to seek higher-quality development."

China has developed itself while making contributions to the world in the past decade through opening-up, he said, adding that the country has become a powerhouse for global economic growth, an advocate for global openness and a provider of international public goods.

According to the report, although the overall openness level of developing countries was lower than that of developed countries, the openness index of many developed economies showed a downward trend, which reduced the global opening momentum in 2020.

In sharp contrast, economies involved in the Belt and Road Initiative continue to broaden their openness, and the openness index of the BRICS countries has significantly increased, the report showed.

"It is urgent that countries in the world expand openness and collaboration to make the 'cake' (of development) bigger and divide it equally and promote win-win cooperation," Zhou Xiaochuan, former governor of the People's Bank of China, the nation's central bank, said in a video message.

Experts said both theory and practice indicate that the evolution of world openness shows not a linear but an oscillating trend, while at present it is still in a turbulent downward stage.

Zhang Yuyan, director of the Institute of World Economics and Politics at the CASS, said the report showed that the gap between levels of openness in developed and developing economies is narrowing.

More driving forces for world openness are emerging, he added.

Gu Xueming, president of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, said the nation is forming new competitiveness in the manufacturing sector thanks to its strong industrial and supply chain resilience, which will facilitate its deeper integration into global industrial and supply chains.

He also spoke highly of China's efforts in pushing for high-standard opening-up in sectors such as financial services and the digital economy.