Photo: Courtesy of CGCC

 
China held on Tuesday a dialogue between diplomats and business leaders at home and abroad to build a platform for trade and investment and business cooperation between the country and the world, as the country gained a rapid economic recovery with its better-than-expected GDP expansion in the first quarter of the year.

Since 2023, the country's economy has seen growth after the optimization of epidemic control and prevention measures, with positive economic indicators such as consumption, investment and exports, and a marked improvement in market expectations, Jiang Ming, president of China General Chamber of Commerce (CGCC), said on Tuesday.

As the country is rapidly recovering from the pandemic, the CGCC held the 6th New Year Dialogue Between Diplomats and Business Leaders, an international communication platform attended by over 400 guests.  Participants included more than 20 foreign ambassadors in China from 60 countries and regions, 100 economic and commercial counselors from foreign embassies in China, and representatives of business organizations. 

The event's objective is to continually implement international cooperation under China's Belt and Road Initiative, pragmatically constructing a platform for trade, investment, and business cooperation between China and other countries. The aim is to help enterprises discover new opportunities in trade, investment, technological innovation, and other areas to promote coordinated economic development and shared prosperity.

As China's business environment improves, the country will foster closer economic and trade relations with the world and share the vast opportunities arising from the "dual circulation" economic development pattern, noted Jiang Ming.

Jiang Zengwei, former Vice Minister of Commerce, stated during the event that China will proactively align with high-standard international economic and trade rules, further develop a market-oriented and internationalized business environment, and strive for high-quality development to inject new vitality and momentum into global economic growth.

"The exchange and cooperation platform created by the dialogue will help enterprises from different countries better understand the Chinese market and economic development situation, and deepen pragmatic cooperation through enhancing mutual trust to achieve mutual benefit and win-win situation," he noted.

A participant surnamed Chen from a Chinese customs brokerage company told the Global Times that since the optimization of the antivirus policies, trade contacts with foreign enterprises had seen significant growth.

"This meeting is to provide a platform for countries to enjoy the dividends of China's rapid economic development. I believe our company will gain more opportunities in the country through this conference," a representative from a Malaysian company said.

The event signifies China's ongoing efforts to further boost trade amid a slew of external uncertainties.

Photo: Courtesy of CGCC

China's imports and exports of goods went off to a steady start this year, growing by 4.8 percent year-on-year in the first three months of 2023, data from General Administration of Customs showed.

China's State Council, the cabinet, on Tuesday announced a set of measures aimed at further stabilizing the country's foreign trade, including increased financial support for the trade sector, expanding settlement in the yuan and better dealing with "unreasonable" foreign trade restrictions.