The Service Trade Fair provides a stage for cooperation for Chinese businessmen and promotes the development of service trade

China News Service, Beijing, September 13 (Reporter Xu Wenxin) The 2026 China International Fair for Trade in Services (hereinafter referred to as the "Service Trade Fair") is being held in Beijing. Many participating Chinese businessmen were interviewed by China News Service and said that the Service Trade Fair provides a stage different from traditional trade in goods, brings cooperation opportunities to Chinese businessmen, and also injects new momentum into the development of global trade in services.

Zhang Huaxie, Vice Chairman of China-Africa Cultural Promotion Association, is an old friend of CIFTIS. He said that this year's Service Trade Fair pays more attention to the implementation of projects and cultural exports overseas. The "China Services" exhibition area and the "Overseas Services" special area established for the first time this year are highly consistent with the "Thousand Sails Going to the Sea" action plan for foreign cultural trade. Intangible cultural heritage, cultural and creative products, and regional specialties from all over the country are on display, and local brands going overseas have become a major highlight.

2026 is the "Year of People-to-People Exchanges between China and Africa". Businessmen from emerging markets such as Africa and the Middle East actively participated in the conference, and people-to-people exchanges have a prominent effect in empowering economic and trade cooperation. Zhang Huaxie said that with this participation in the conference, China-Africa exchanges have shifted from forum dialogue to the integration of cultural display, product docking and trade implementation. The association not only connects with provincial cultural, tourism, cultural and creative, and brand operation agencies to promote the export of Chinese goods overseas, but also contacts cross-border compliance, international communication, overseas legal and other service providers to complete communication and channel support, creating a one-stop service to help enterprises go overseas.

Yun Yana, Vice President of the UAE Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that the Middle East is in an accelerated period of digital transformation. From smart cities to cross-border payments, from cloud services to e-commerce infrastructure, the demand for digital products is strong and urgent. The Chinese digital technology displayed at the Service Trade Fair provides a "mature solution" for the Middle East market.

"The Canton Fair 'sells', the CIIE 'buys', and the Service Trade will 'empower'." Yun Yana said that the Service Trade will put financial, digital, cultural tourism, consulting and other service capabilities on the table. In the past, Chinese businessmen were "middlemen" who made money from poor information and poor circulation. Now they are "integrators" and make money from poor service and poor implementation. Chinese businessmen are familiar with local laws, connections and markets, and can act as "translators" and "implementers" to transform Chinese technologies into solutions that adapt to local laws, culture and business habits, so that the technology can truly take root.

Yao Honghui, China representative of the Brazil-China Economic and Trade Exchange Center, who has participated in several trade fairs, said that the center has 27 years of transnational experience in medical education and other fields. Currently, artificial intelligence is developing rapidly and hopes to create a cooperation system of "health, education, green buildings, and happy life." The Global Alliance for Trade in Services provides a platform for cooperation and exchange, think tank research and policy dialogue, while the China Service Trade Association builds a bridge to connect China's services trade resources.

Ma Bo, director of the Beijing Overseas Chinese Technology Entrepreneurs Association, has worked in Japan for nearly 20 years. He speaks English, Japanese and German and has been involved in service work since the last Service Trade Fair. He said that this year's CIFTIS has a large number of foreign merchants, a huge demand for foreign language services, and further increased international participation.

"China's trade in services is becoming an important engine for global economic growth. It not only provides developing countries with lessons learned, but also injects more stability and new momentum into the world economy." Ma Bo said that the Middle East, North Africa, South Asia and other regions are feeling the dividends of China's economic development and the leading role of China's development. We hope to establish relations with these countries and introduce China's emerging industries to them to achieve mutual benefit. (over)