Xi Jinping calls for freer service trade as China tries to counter decoupling
- Xi’s advocacy of international cooperation comes as opposition to China builds in Washington and New Delhi
- The Chinese president calls upon other countries to help forge an ‘open and inclusive’ environment
Xi’s advocacy of international cooperation at the opening ceremony of the China International Fair for Trade in Services, the first big trade fair since the Covid-19 pandemic struck, came as opposition to China has been building in Washington and New Delhi.
China has “overcome many difficulties” to host such an international trade event, Xi said, and hopes “to work with every other country … to jointly promote global services trade and promote the rapid recovery of the world economy”.
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Xi did not mention the United States or India in his speech. But he made an attempt to position China as a fighter against “unilateralism” and a power that could be relied upon when the world faces the “unprecedented challenges” of shrinking trade and economic growth.
“China will unswervingly expand opening up [its economy] … lower market access barriers for the services industry, and actively expand imports of high-quality services,” Xi said. He did not provide any details of how this would be translated into policy.