Voice of Canton Fair ｜ Wang Shouwen： Actively promoting the accession to the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement.

　　On the 15th, during the 133rd Canton Fair, the second Pearl River International Trade Forum held a forum on digital innovation and development of trade. Wang Shouwen, international trade negotiator and vice minister of the Ministry of Commerce, said at the meeting that China is actively promoting the accession to the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA) and the accession process to the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (CPTPP).

　　As far as DEPA is concerned, Wang Shouwen said that China is not only negotiating rules in e-commerce, cross-border paperless trade and cross-border data circulation, but also cooperating in specific projects, including mutual recognition of digital certificates, electronic contracts and electronic documents. "We have conducted in-depth exchanges with DEPA members on trade facilitation issues such as paperless trade, domestic electronic trading framework, logistics, electronic invoices and electronic payment, with the aim of application and promoting the efficiency of our trade links." He said.

　　The formulation of international rules for the digitalization of goods trade

　　As mentioned earlier, Wang Shouwen said that China is actively promoting its accession to DEPA.

　　On March 2, at the press conference held by the State Council Press Office, Wang Shouwen said that we have made progress in actively promoting our accession to high-standard economic and trade agreements. CPTPP and DEPA represent the highest international standards in the field of economic and trade rules. For CPTPP, China and its members have had extensive contacts and exchanges at different levels. We also had a very good communication with its members about DEPA. On August 18th last year, members of the DEPA Agreement decided to set up a working group in which China joined. In November last year, three members of DEPA and China held a ministerial meeting of the Quartet, and in December last year, the Quartet held a kick-off meeting of chief negotiators.

　　Shu Yuting, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce, said at a press conference on March 23 that in the next step, the Ministry of Commerce will continue to actively promote free trade cooperation with trading partners including countries that have jointly built the Belt and Road Initiative, and continuously expand the network of high-standard free trade zones facing the world.In terms of expansion, we will actively promote China’s accession to CPTPP and DEPA, continue to promote the negotiation and upgrading of their respective trade agreements, and promote the negotiation and signing of free trade agreements with more willing countries..In terms of quality improvement, we will further improve the openness of market access and actively participate in the formulation of rules in emerging fields such as digital economy and environmental protection.In terms of efficiency, we will continue to increase the publicity and promotion of free trade agreements, help maintain the stability of regional and global industrial chain supply chains through the implementation of free trade agreements, and bring more benefits to enterprises and people in China and their respective trading partners.

　　In recent years,China has made positive progress in the digitalization of trade management and trade mode.

　　Wang Shouwen said that in recent years, the Ministry of Commerce and relevant departments have built a "single window" for international trade based on the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone and the Fujian Pilot Free Trade Zone, that is, more than 20 trade supervision departments, including customs inspection and quarantine, border inspection, commerce, taxation and foreign exchange, have been concentrated on the same platform to realize "one declaration and data sharing". This has greatly facilitated enterprises, so the "single window" system has been pushed across the country.

　　Wang Shouwen said that at the same time, the Ministry of Commerce has also formulated a construction plan for the digital pilot area of global trade in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, supporting Guangdong and local governments to carry out pilot projects in the field of digital trade.

　　In terms of digitalization of trade mode, the Ministry of Commerce supports Yiwu to carry out comprehensive reform of international trade and promote the practice in cross-border electronic commerce, which provides opportunities for millions of small and micro foreign trade enterprises.

　　"Yiwu has developed an online matchmaking trading tool, featuring market operators, and intelligently screening suppliers and purchasers, providing services to more than 2,600 foreign trade enterprises." Wang Shouwen said that the Ministry of Commerce is currently working with relevant departments to promote some specific project cooperation, reorganize expert committees, carry out research on the index system of goods trade digitalization, and promote digital service providers and foreign trade enterprises to jointly solve problems related to the digitalization process.

　　Wang Shouwen said that the Ministry of Commerce insisted on "letting data run more and enterprises run less". While deepening the digitalization of trade management and trade mode, the Ministry of Commerce is actively studying and promoting the digitalization of trade links, trade services and trade subjects.

　　Specifically, Wang Shouwen said, the first is to promote digitalization in trade supply and mining. For example, develop digital exhibitions and enhance the platform function at major trade exhibitions. Canton Fair is one of the best application scenarios of trade digitalization. The Ministry of Commerce supports online promotion, supply and mining docking and online and offline information sharing of enterprises by using the platform of Canton Fair digitalization.

　　The second is to promote digitalization in trade services. Relying on the "single window" of international trade, we will deepen the exchange and sharing of trade data across departments and regions. The Ministry of Commerce supports local governments to sort out all aspects of the import and export trade process, and carry out one-stop application integration in customs clearance, taxation, quarantine, finance, insurance, logistics, payment, etc., so as to effectively facilitate enterprise customs declaration and promote digitalization in the whole link of service and goods trade.

　　The third is to promote digitalization in trade infrastructure. Accelerate the construction of smart overseas warehouses and smart ports, promote the safe and controllable automatic loading and unloading and the application of automatic systems, improve the level of electronic circulation of port operation documents, realize data sharing and cooperative operation among ports, warehouses, freight forwarders, shipping companies, fleets, foreign trade enterprises and their agents, and implement digital management of the whole process. The fourth is the digital international rule-making of goods trade.

　　The fifth is to try first in trade digitalization. For example, the Ministry of Commerce supports Guangdong’s construction of a digital pilot zone for global trade around Greater Bay Area, refines policies and pilot schemes, focuses on the digitalization of key links such as manufacturing, marketing, customs clearance at ports, warehousing and logistics, after-sales service and financial services, supports the docking of data flow rules for cross-border trade in Greater Bay Area, strengthens standard interoperability, and supports mutual recognition and data sharing.