China to benefit global economy with further open up policies

Four decades after China first announced its decision to open up to the world, the once insignificant player on the global economic stage is now ranked first in terms of contribution to world economic growth. The nation now aims to mull over more measures to further open its economy, promoting high-quality development of trade and two-way investment.

According to statistics from China's National Bureau of Statistics, before China's opening up, the country's average annual contribution to global economic growth was only 1.1 percent. However, from 1979 to 2012, the average yearly contribution rate shot up to 15.9 percent. In 2018, the ratio of China's contribution to global economic growth was 27.5 percent, 24.4 percentage points higher than in 1978.

"Thanks to its opening-up policies, China has made continuous progress and breakthroughs in trade development. In the future, China must advance high-quality economic development under conditions of deeper opening up, bolstering the development of the global economy," Qian Keming, vice-minister of commerce, said at the China Forum in October.

China's opening up has also provided opportunities for its trade partners. The country has now become the biggest trade partner of over 120 countries and regions worldwide, while the average annual growth of its foreign direct investment reached 25.2 percent in 2018, nearly three times its global counterparts.

"China has made great efforts to open more fields up to foreign investment, as well as creating a better business environment for foreign enterprises. My country welcomes such gestures, and we hope Japanese enterprises can contribute to China's high-standard opening up in the future," said Hideo Ishizuki, minister of the economic section of the Japanese Embassy to China.

Ishizuki further noted that China's opening up had entered a new phase of high-standard and high-quality development, while further international cooperation is needed to bolster the growth of the global economy.