Xi Jinping vows greater access to Chinese market

 

China will allow greater market access and share opportunities with all countries, President Xi Jinping said on Friday, following a sharp slowdown of external trade and ongoing tensions with major economies. 

In an address via video to open the China International Import Expo in Shanghai, Xi called on the world to commit to openness amid what he deemed “accelerated changes unseen in a century.” “We will share with every country China’s vast market opportunities [while] we step up efforts to cultivate a robust domestic market,” Xi said. 

“China will urge all countries and parties to share opportunities for deepening international cooperation, fully and deeply participate in the reform of the World Trade Organization, and promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation,” he added. 

The Chinese leader, who has begun a third term following the Communist Party’s national congress last month, reiterated the country’s readiness to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, which includes Japan among its 11 member countries. 

At the same venue last year, Xi said China was open to negotiations on industrial subsidies and state-owned enterprises in order to join the trade pact. The six-day annual expo, touted by local media as showcasing China’s commitment to opening up to the world, is being held amid the country’s trade slowdown. “China’s potential growth has been declining visibly,” Citi Research said in a report Thursday.