The mascot FuYan for the 2023 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) is seen at Shougang Park in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 13, 2023. The 2023 CIFTIS will be held at the China National Convention Center and Shougang Park in Beijing from Sept. 2 to Sept. 6. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

China's foreign trade of services maintains its upward trend, recent data showed, which indicates China's continuous efforts to encourage further opening-up.

The data of foreign trade of services hit 3.67 trillion yuan ($503.42 billion) in Jan-July, up 8.1 percent year-on-year, of which the knowledge-intensive service hit 1.58 trillion yuan, up 11.7 percent than the same period last year, data from Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) showed on Thursday. 

The portion of the knowledge-intensive services accounted for 43.2 percent of overall foreign trade of services, growth of 1.4 percentage points than the same period of last year, MOFCOM announced. 

Travel services have recovered quickly. From January to July, the import and export of travel services was 768.13 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 66.2 percent, continuing to become the fastest growing service trade field. Among them, exports increased by 55.8 percent and imports increased by 67 percent, MOFCOM said. 

The annual China International Fair for Trade in Services will run from September 2 to 6 in Beijing, where about 60 companies and organizations will show their latest technological achievements, and more than 2,200 enterprises have confirmed their attendance at the on-site exhibition, activating the global trade of services.

The UK is planning to send its largest business group in four years to attend the event as the Guest Country of Honor, the UK Embassy in China told the Global Times.

Global Times