Global firms bullish on China's services development

Foreign firms are tapping into the ongoing 2022 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS), eyeing growing opportunities amid the country's opening-up endeavors.

Fukaishi Akihiro, president of Epson (China) Co., Ltd., said that China's opening-up measures have fostered a favorable business environment, even under the pandemic, and Epson China still sees steady business growth and development.

Since Epson entered China in the 1980s, the country has been deemed one of its most important markets, Fukaishi said.

As China has revved up economic development and industry upgrade, its services trade sector has sustained a robust momentum, with an annual growth of 6.1 percent since 2012, 3.1 percentage points higher than the global expansion, data from the commerce ministry showed.

The CIFTIS will further promote the development of related sectors by exhibiting more new types of services and solutions to the public and providing a platform for companies to make exchanges while offering policy guidance and industrial chain connections to participating firms, according to Fukaishi.

Having already cooperated with Chinese partners in printing, robotics, and other industries, the company hopes to leverage the fair to deepen its cooperation with Chinese partners to keep innovating its products.

It also noted that it remains upbeat about maintaining growth in the Chinese market. "We recognize China's determination to push for green development from the Chinese government's 'dual carbon' goals and long-term targets through 2035, which is consistent with our direction of green and sustainable development since founding," Fukaishi said.

Epson is not alone in hoping to avail of the CIFTIS to display their cutting-edge applications. Amazon Web Services, participating in the fair for the second time, showcased pioneering solutions in a dozen industries, such as medical services, smart manufacturing, and gaming, at this year's event.

U.S. company Qualcomm has attended the fair for three consecutive years. This year, the company demonstrated 5G, artificial intelligence, and other technologies and their applications in sectors including manufacturing and automobile.

Themed "cooperate for better development, innovate for a greener future," the 2022 CIFTIS held in Beijing features greater internationalization with some 400 Global Fortune 500 companies and industry-leading enterprises participating. It represents a larger share than its last edition.

Along with other primary fairs, such as the China (Shanghai) International Technology Fair, "China is actively promoting the progress of turning the country's super-large market into broader opportunities for all countries," said Wang Dongtang, a senior official with the Ministry of Commerce, at a press conference last month.

The country has shortened its negative list for foreign investment for five consecutive years. The national demonstration zones to promote the innovative development of services trade have expanded to 28 provincial-level regions one year after its announcement, with over 90 percent of introduced measures implemented.

During this year's CIFTIS, China reaffirmed that it remains committed to promoting high-quality development through high-level opening-up.

It will broaden market access in the services sector, facilitate opening-up in cross-border services trade, expand the function of opening-up platforms, and strive to establish a high-standard opening-up system for the services sector.

"China has boosted the willingness of foreign companies to enter the Chinese market with its opening-up gestures, internationalized vision, and comprehensive advantages in terms of optimizing business environment and providing services," said Michael Bi, markets managing partner of EY Greater China.