CIIE: Openness and Cooperation Write a New Chapter for World Economy-Ambassador Zhou

2019年11月7日，尼日利亚《领导者报》发表驻尼日利亚大使周平剑题为《进博会：书写世界经济开放合作新篇章》署名文章。全文如下：

On November 7, 2019, Nigerian leading newspaper Leadership published an article written by Ambassador of China to Nigeria Dr. ZHOU Pingjian. The full text goes as follows:

　　2019年11月5日至10日，第二届中国国际进口博览会在上海举办。这一盛会见证着中国深度融入世界，与全球各国合作共赢。

　　首届进博会2018年在上海举办，成交额达578亿美元，取得了圆满成功。习近平主席在同与会各国领导人举行的双边活动中达成98项合作事项，其中23项已经办结，47项取得积极进展，28项正在加紧推进。首届进博会规模之高、展览档次之高、效果之好，受到国际社会广泛赞誉。

From November 5 to 10, 2019, the Second China International Import Expo (CIIE) is being held in Shanghai. This grand event witnessed in-depth integration of China into the world and win-win cooperation between China and countries across the globe.

The first CIIE held in Shanghai last year achieved great success, reaching deals worth of $57.8 billion. During the bilateral meetings between President Xi and leaders of various countries, 98 initiatives were agreed upon, of which 23 have now been completed, 47 are making good progress, and 28 are on track of steady implementation. The CIIE's unprecedentedly large scale, high-end expo and fruitful outcomes have been universally acknowledged by the international community.

　　第二届进博会起点更高，规模更大，质量更优，创新更强，前景令人鼓舞。181个国家（地区）、国际组织和3800多家参展商、50多万采购商报名参展，涵盖制造、贸易、服务、电商、跨境平台等各行各业，参展企业数量以及其中世界500强和行业龙头企业数量均超过首届。

The second CIIE, building on the success of the first one, is larger in scale, better in quality, more innovative and high-end, thus holding a promising future. 181 countries (regions), international organizations, over 3,800 exhibitors and more than 500,000 purchasers have attended the expo, covering such areas as manufacturing, trade, services, e-commerce and cross-border platforms. The number of participating enterprises and the number of the participating world top 500 and industry-leading enterprises have both exceeded the first CIIE.

　　进博会的旺盛人气正是全球各地企业对中国全方位开放不断深化投下的信心票。更低关税水平、更短负面清单、更便利市场准入、更透明市场规则……中国推动更高水平对外开放的一系列重大举措相继落地，各国企业进入中国市场的制度环境不断优化，共享中国机遇的渠道变得更加便捷。世界银行10月24日发布《2020营商环境报告》，中国营商环境排名由46位上升到31位，提升15位。中国消费市场的崛起，已被世界普遍视为中国经济行稳致远的重要支撑，更是各国企业继续投资中国的主要聚焦点。

The popularity of the CIIE reflects the confidence of enterprises around the world in China's determination to constantly deepen its efforts at all-round opening-up. With the implementation of a major series of favorable policies and measures aiming at promoting opening-up at a higher level, China has constantly optimized its institutional environment. By further lowering its overall tariff level, broadening market access, shortening the negative lists for foreign investment, and promoting transparent market rules, China has endeavored to make it more convenient for various companies around the world to share its development opportunities. On October 24, the World Bank released its Ease of Doing Business Report 2020, which ranks China 31st, up by 15 places from last year's ranking of 46th. The rise of China's consumer market has been universally regarded as an important pillar of the steady and sustained economic growth of the country, and the primary focus of foreign enterprises to continue investing in China.

　　经过改革开放40多年来的快速发展，中国既是“世界工厂”，也是“全球市场”，已成为世界第一大工业国、第一大货物贸易国、第一大外汇储备国。14亿中国人民及其中4亿多中等收入人群的巨大市场，即将成为世界上最大的消费市场。未来15年，中国进口商品和服务将分别超过30万亿美元和10万亿美元。更为重要的是，中国始终向世界敞开大门，已成为世界上100多个国家的最大贸易伙伴，为世界各国提供了广阔市场，带来了无限机遇。

After more than four decades of rapid development through reform and opening-up, China is not only "the world's factory", but also a global market. China has become the largest industrial country, the largest trader in goods, and the largest holder of foreign exchange reserves in the world. With 1.4 billion Chinese people and 400-million middle income population, China will soon become the world's largest consumer market. In the next 15 years, China's imports of goods and services will exceed $30 trillion and $10 trillion respectively. More importantly, China always pursues the policy of opening-up and has become the largest trading partner of more than 100 countries, providing a huge market and immeasurable opportunities for the world.