Can Digital Trade Become An Important Engine For Global Trade Growth How Does China Tap Into The Development Potential Of Digital Trade

Can digital trade become an important engine for global trade growth? How does China tap into the development potential of digital trade?

The development of digital trade worldwide has shown a rapid rise. This rise is not a simple increase in scale, but an increase in the proportion of overall trade. In other words, digital trade products have become a large part of service trade. Its share of trade is growing. The rise is reflected in the improvement of the infrastructure network supporting cross-border digital trade and the active efforts made by countries in digital signatures and trade facilitation. With the advancement of technology, digital trade provides more possibilities and reduces the transaction costs of international trade. This is also an important reason for the rapid development of digital trade. Of course, countries do not have exactly the same space to develop digital trade, and the conditions are also not the same. Some countries have stronger momentum for the development of digital trade. Based on the coordination of all parties, a more effective development path will emerge. However, there is still a certain degree of digital divide, including in the majority of developing countries. The lack of basic conditions has greatly affected the ability of digital trade to exert its own advantages. Digital trade is not a simple conversion of traditional trade to a new trade method, nor is it a zero-sum game, but an innovation that provides a greater development space for digital trade through technological progress, creativity, and collaboration among countries. To a certain extent, it will also support the existing international trade network in reverse. Therefore, there is a huge space for the development of digital trade, especially when it is further integrated with industries and trade methods, its effect in promoting economic development will be enhanced.

The rapid advancement of digital technology has promoted the development of digital markets and digital platforms, reshaped the global trade chain, and changed the shape of trade. At present, digital trade has become a new trend in international trade. The development of digital trade has significantly reduced transaction costs, expanded market size, improved business efficiency, and provided new impetus for global trade growth. Digital trade may become an important engine for global trade growth.

In the future, China should actively develop the development potential of digital trade. Strengthen infrastructure construction, including the Internet, cloud computing, big data and other fields to increase the penetration rate and application level of digital technology; promote the development of e-commerce, encourage and support enterprises to carry out cross-border e-commerce business, and expand the scale and application of e-commerce platforms. Influence; strengthen data governance and protection, establish and improve data governance and protection systems, and promote the healthy development of digital trade; strengthen international cooperation and exchanges, including actively participating in the formulation and negotiation of international rules for digital trade, and strengthening cooperation and exchanges with other countries , jointly create a global e-commerce ecosystem, etc.

Data show that in the first three quarters of 2023, China's cross-border e-commerce exports reached 1.3 trillion yuan, an increase of 17.7%, which is much higher than the overall growth rate of foreign trade exports in the same period. From January to November 2023, China's import and export volume of digitally deliverable knowledge-intensive services reached 2.43515 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.3%. It can be seen that digital trade has become an important engine for global trade growth.

China's digital trade, represented by cross-border e-commerce and digitally delivered services, has huge potential. To develop the potential of digital trade, first, we must focus on strengthening top-level design, strengthen digital trade standardization, rely on China's digital technology advantages to cultivate a good ecosystem for digital trade development, and highlight China's comparative advantages in participating in international trade; second, we must strengthen enterprises Independent innovation capabilities, improve the technological content of China's digital trade exports, and strive to form new advantages in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) trade and investment; third, to strengthen international digital trade cooperation, China should build a regional cooperation mechanism and accelerate the establishment of a China-centered digital trade regional value chain, strengthen digital trade cooperation with countries co-building the "One Belt and One Road", promote the formulation of digital economic and trade rules, and promote China's foreign trade to move towards high added value.