12/09/2025
Services trade emerges as key engine for China's high-quality development
服务贸易成为中国高质量发展的关键引擎This photo taken on Sept. 10, 2025 shows an Iranian booth of the thematic exhibitions during the 2025 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) at Shougang Park in Beijing, capital of China. (Xinhua)
这张照片拍摄于2025年9月10日，为在中国首都北京首钢园举行的2025年中国国际服务贸易交易会（服贸会）期间主题展览的伊朗展位。（新华社）
The services trade is becoming an increasingly crucial engine for China's economic growth and has substantial potential, driven by technological advancements such as artificial intelligence (AI), according to global representatives at the ongoing 2025 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS).
正在进行的 2025 年中国国际服务贸易交易会（服贸会）的全球代表表示，在人工智能（AI）等技术进步的推动下，服务贸易正成为中国经济增长日益重要的引擎，并具有巨大的潜力。
The fair, which opened on Sept. 10 and will close on Sept. 14 in Beijing, features high-level forums where government officials, industry leaders and international experts are exchanging insights on the development of the services trade.
该展会于9月10日在北京开幕，将于9月14日闭幕，届时将举办高级别论坛，政府官员、行业领袖和国际专家将就服务贸易的发展进行交流。
Services represent a great opportunity for growth in China as the scale of the domestic industry is relatively small compared to similar countries, Marshall Mills, senior resident representative in China of the International Monetary Fund, said at the Forum on Development of Trade in Services.
国际货币基金组织驻华高级代表马歇尔·米尔斯（Marshall Mills）在服务贸易发展论坛上表示，服务业是中国增长的巨大机会，因为与同类国家相比，中国国内产业的规模相对较小。
He noted that total factor productivity growth in China's services sector has been accelerating, particularly in fields like financial services and commerce, playing a vital role in the country's continued economic development.
他指出，中国服务业的全要素生产率增长一直在加速，特别是在金融服务和商业等领域，在国家经济的持续发展中发挥着至关重要的作用。
Tu Xinquan, dean of the China Institute for WTO Studies at the University of International Business and Economics, observed that while China's services sector now accounts for over 50 percent of GDP, it remains below the 70 to 80 percent levels typical of developed economies. "As the services sector expands, trade in services becomes a natural progression," he said.
对外经济贸易大学中国世贸组织研究所院长涂新泉观察到，虽然中国服务业目前占 GDP 的 50%以上，但仍低于发达经济体典型的 70%至 80%的水平。“随着服务业的扩张，服务贸易成为一种自然发展，”他说。
"Trade serves as a means to promote services sector growth, while industry expansion drives trade demand. Thus, industrial development and trade development mutually reinforce each other," Tu said, adding that expanded trade in services can boost domestic supply and stimulate consumption, which is a key growth driver for China.
“贸易是促进服务业增长的一种手段，而行业扩张则推动贸易需求。因此，工业发展和贸易发展相辅相成，“涂说，并补充说，扩大服务贸易可以提振国内供应和刺激消费，这是中国的主要增长动力。
Recent years have witnessed rapid growth in China's services trade, fueled by the country's sustained opening-up policies. A Ministry of Commerce report released on Sept. 11 has revealed that China's total services trade volume surpassed 1 trillion U.S. dollars for the first time in 2024, ranking second globally.
近年来，在国家持续开放政策的推动下，中国服务贸易快速增长。商务部9月11日发布的报告显示，2024年中国服务贸易总额首次突破1万亿美元，位居全球第二。
"China's trade in services has entered a stage of high-quality development," Chinese Vice Commerce Minister Sheng Qiuping said, noting that the country's services trade has maintained an average annual growth rate of 6.7 percent since 2012, 1.7 times that of its goods trade.
“中国服务贸易进入高质量发展阶段，”中国商务部副部长盛秋平表示，自2012年以来，中国服务贸易年均保持6.7%的增速，是货物贸易的1.7倍。
Digital transformation is accelerating this trend. Long Guoqiang, deputy head of the Development Research Center of the State Council, said that digitalization has transformed many services that were previously difficult to trade across borders into tradable activities, accelerating the development of the services trade across both traditional and emerging sectors.
数字化转型正在加速这一趋势。国务院发展研究中心副主任龙国强表示，数字化将许多以前难以跨境贸易的服务转变为可贸易活动，加快了传统和新兴行业服务贸易的发展。
In particular, the rapid development of AI is poised to open a new chapter for the services trade, and that is an area where China maintains competitive advantages, he said.
他表示，特别是人工智能的快速发展有望为服务贸易开启新的篇章，这是中国保持竞争优势的领域。
At CIFTIS, exhibitors are showcasing AI-powered solutions across multiple sectors, demonstrating technology's transformative impact on education, tourism, health care and sports. Chinese-made humanoid robots at the event have exhibited capabilities like delivering food, preparing coffee, playing football and boxing matches.
在服贸会上，参展商展示了多个领域的人工智能解决方案，展示了技术对教育、旅游、医疗保健和体育的变革性影响。中国制造的人形机器人在活动中展示了送餐、准备咖啡、踢足球和拳击比赛等能力。
China's rapidly developing AI sector is empowering small and medium-sized enterprises to participate in global competition, Sheng said, noting that the proportion of knowledge-intensive services exports in China's overall export of services has increased rapidly in recent years.
盛说，中国快速发展的人工智能行业正在赋能中小企业参与全球竞争，并指出近年来知识密集型服务出口占中国整体服务出口的比重迅速上升。
Looking ahead, China will continue to expand its high-level opening-up, which will include the promotion of pilot programs in the fields of telecommunication and medicine, while steadily advancing opening-up in the education and culture sectors, according to Sheng.
展望未来，中国将继续扩大高水平对外开放，包括推进电信和医疗领域的试点，同时稳步推进教育和文化领域的开放。
"We will deepen our integration into the world market, enhance industrial synergy with other countries, and inject greater momentum into global economic prosperity through opening-up and cooperation in the services trade," he said. (XINHUA)
他说：“我们将深化融入世界市场，增强与其他国家的产业协同效应，通过服务贸易开放和合作，为全球经济繁荣注入更大动能。（新华社）
