China drives BRI e-commerce forward

China, by leveraging the Silk Road E-commerce platform, will help widen the channel for importing high-quality products and fuel the digital transformation in economies participating in the Belt and Road Initiative, officials and experts said on Friday.

"The Silk Road E-commerce initiative serves as an important digital bridge to boost trade connectivity," said Sheng Qiuping, vice-minister of commerce, during the China International Import Expo in Shanghai.

Under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, Silk Road E-commerce is a major platform for global digital cooperation. It helps to improve policy coordination, facilitate trade in distinctive products, and accelerate e-commerce growth in economies participating in the BRI.

The number of partner countries under the Silk Road E-commerce initiative has reached 36 as of late September, data from the ministry showed.

Sheng noted that Chinese e-commerce platforms have established 67 direct sourcing bases across 22 partner countries, driving the digital transformation of local traditional industries and enabling them to share in the benefits of the digital economy.

Going forward, China, along with its partner countries, will enhance e-commerce cooperation mechanisms and jointly foster a fair, transparent and predictable policy environment for e-commerce growth, Sheng said.

"We stand ready to work with other countries in fostering mutual engagement in e-commerce and achieving tangible outcomes in our e-commerce cooperation," Sheng added.

China's cross-border e-commerce imports and exports hit 2.06 trillion yuan ($289.2 billion) in the first three quarters of this year, rising 6.4 percent year-on-year, data from the General Administration of Customs showed in October.

Against the backdrop of global digital transformation, developing e-commerce is a shared aspiration, said Zhou Mi, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation.

The toolkit of China's e-commerce, including efficient logistics networks that deliver packages in hours, seamless integration of social media, livestreaming that turns viewing into buying, and the digital payment platforms that make transactions frictionless, has led to a growing recognition among countries seeking to boost e-commerce that China is the partner of choice, Zhou said.

China has been providing practical and tailored training programs for governments and businesses seeking the operational know-how and business formats that have propelled China's digital economy.

The capacity building online lectures of the Silk Road E-Commerce initiative, launched in 2020, have seen 108 sessions, benefiting over 100,000 participants from 80 countries, the ministry said in April.

China has a highly diverse e-commerce ecosystem — from platform-based online retail and livestream commerce to community group buying and instant retail. These new business models and technologies offer insights for e-commerce development in other countries, said Zhu Keli, founding director of the China Institute of New Economy.