China hailed as key pillar of stability

China has emerged as an enduring pillar of stability in an increasingly fragmented global economy, scholars and business executives said, as the annual China International Import Expo underscores the country's bid to anchor investor confidence and sustain global trade momentum despite mounting geopolitical strains.

They noted that as trade tensions and geopolitical frictions weigh on global growth, the CIIE has become a vivid example of China's commitment to high-level opening-up and to sharing its vast market opportunities with the world.

Speaking at a sub-forum during the ongoing eighth CIIE in Shanghai, Wang Wen, dean of Renmin University of China's Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies, said that rising geopolitical uncertainties have dampened global investment confidence, dragged on economic growth and weakened trade momentum.

"Governments and companies around the world are now seeking new pathways to ensure resilience and long-term competitiveness in the face of such challenges," said Wang.

"In this process, China will continue to serve as a stabilizing force for the global economy, promoting regional cooperation and reinforcing the multilateral trading system, while offering long-term predictability to global investors," said Sheng Qiuping, vice-minister of commerce.

Many multinational corporations have deepened their footprint in China, enhancing localization and innovation to better serve both domestic and global markets.

One such company is French industrial conglomerate Schneider Electric. The eight-time participant at the CIIE unveiled a dual-innovation solution that integrates advanced power supply and liquid cooling technologies, offering an integrated solution to meet computing centers' core needs for high density, resilience and low-carbon performance.

"Building on our deepening 'China-Hub' strategy, we have made China a global hub for innovation, placing our most challenging core technology projects here for development, validation and worldwide application," said Xu Dong, Schneider Electric's vice-president and head of secure power China hub.

Xu said that with an agile, fully integrated innovation, manufacturing and sales system, a strong local engineering team, and a global power innovation center working in tandem with its digital and green factories, the French company can swiftly respond to market demand, shorten supply chains and deliver solutions closely aligned with local customer needs.

Also upbeat about the Chinese market, ASICS Corp, a Japanese sportswear manufacturer and a six-time CIIE participant, will continue to increase investment and deepen its presence in the country, which now stands as its fourth-largest market worldwide after Europe, North America and Japan.

By leveraging the CIIE's role as a major platform for international exchange and its spillover effects, ASICS can not only help Chinese consumers better understand its innovative products and services, but can also gain deeper insights into market trends and consumer needs in China, said Calvin Gao, managing director of ASICS China.

"This enables us to apply cutting-edge technologies to deliver higher-quality products and brand experiences, laying a solid foundation for our continued growth in the Chinese market," said Gao.

Similar views were shared by Arthur Xu, president of Danfoss China. This year's CIIE takes on unique and heightened significance as China is poised to enter the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30). The country aims to drive green and low-carbon economic and social development while fostering new quality productive forces to power future growth, he said.

Xu said the CIIE serves as a vital bridge for translating these opportunities into practical cooperation.

After putting its campus into operations in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, to produce power modules for industrial, new energy and electric vehicle sectors in April, Danfoss inaugurated its largest production facility in China to manufacture products, including commercial compressors and heat exchangers, in Haiyan, Zhejiang province, in September.

Despite mounting global economic headwinds and uncertainties over the global trade situation, foreign direct investment in China rose 11.2 percent from a year earlier in September alone, said the Ministry of Commerce.