Connecting the World for a Shared Future: Firmly Safeguarding Stable and Smooth Global Industrial and Supply Chains

In order to follow through on the important instructions of General Secretary Xi Jinping to safeguard stable and smooth global industrial and supply chains, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade held in Beijing from November 28 to December 2, 2023, the first China International Supply China Expo (CISCE). Premier Li Qiang attended and delivered a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the CISCE & International Supply China Innovation and Development Forum. As the world’s first national-level exhibition themed on the supply chain, the CISCE, themed “Connecting the World for a Shared Future”, aims to create a new window for promoting high-level opening up, a new platform for fostering a new development paradigm, a new vehicle for building an open world economy, and a new practice for building a community with a shared future for mankind. It was a pragmatic, effective, and fruitful global trade event, a positive contribution to global economic recovery, development and prosperity.

The Important Instructions of General Secretary Xi Jinping on Safeguarding Stable and Smooth Global Industrial and Supply Chains Point out the Direction for Deepening International Industrial Chain and Supply Chain Cooperation.

The world today is undergoing changes unseen in a century that are accelerating at a faster pace. The global industrial and supply chains have experienced shocks. At the same time, a new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation is deepening. The global landscape for innovation and the international economic structure are seeing profound readjustments. Grasping the underlying trends of domestic and international industrial development, General Secretary Xi Jinping has put forward a series of new ideas, new proposals and new initiatives for keeping the global industrial and supply chain stable and smooth, which fully demonstrates the strategic vision of the leader of a major country.

Industrial and supply chains are important global public goods. As pointed out by General Secretary Xi Jinping, “Global supply chains, industrial chains and value chains are closely interconnected. Each country is a link in global cooperation, part of a community with shared interests and shared future”; “It is an important guarantee for global economic development to safeguard the resilience and stability of global industrial and supply chains”. These important instructions have made clear the significance of keeping the global industrial and supply chains stable and unimpeded, raising the awareness that global industrial and supply chains are global public goods.

To consolidate and strengthen global industrial and supply chain cooperation is in the interest and an earnest expectation of all sides. In recent years, China has put forward relevant initiatives and statements on many occasions at multilateral platforms such as APEC, G20, the SCO, and BRICS, thus contributing Chinese wisdom, Chinese solution, and Chinese strength to keeping the global industrial and supply chains stable and smooth. In September 2022, China held the International Forum on Resilient and Stable Industrial and Supply Chains, and launched the “Initiative on International Cooperation on Resilient and Stable Industrial and Supply Chains” together with 6 partner countries including Indonesia. In September 2023, at the 26th ASEAN Plus China, Japan, ROK Summit, China proposed the 10+3 Industrial and Supply Chain Match-up Conference. Going forward, we should firmly safeguard the public good nature of the global industrial and supply chains, promote resource coordination among countries on key industrial chains, take active part in building a resilient global industrial system, and provide more global public goods shared by all so as to help build an open world economy.

Global industrial and supply chains are facing a shake-up. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that “the global industrial system and global industrial and supply chains have demonstrated the trends of diversified layout, regional cooperation, green transformation, and accelerated digitalization, which are in line with the laws underpinning economic development and underlying historical trends beyond the control of the will of the people.” This important statement is based on a deep grasp of the new situation and new changes concerning the global industrial and supply chains, which provides important guidance for the sustainable development of a global industrial system that is open and shared by all.

Over the past decades, economic globalization led by multinational corporations have evolved and developed rapidly, leading to accelerated integration of global industrial and supply chains and a supply chain network featuring the U.S.-centered North America supply chain, the Germany-centered European supply chain and the Asian supply chain centering around China, Japan and the ROK. As things stand, the global industrial and supply chains are demonstrating new features. On the one hand, affected by rising protectionism, public health crisis, and geopolitical turmoil, there is the trend of politicization and security over-stretching in industrial and supply chain cooperation, with the risks of economic fragmentation; on the other hand, with accelerated evolution of the new round of scientific and technological revolution, digitalization and green transformation have begun to represent the direction for the future development of the global industrial and supply chains. Going forward, with the underlying laws and trends in mind, we should not only oppose “decoupling and the cutting-off of chains” in all its forms and promote integrated development of global industrial and supply chains, but also grasp the latest developments of the scientific and technological revolution with an eye to promoting harmony between man and nature, facilitating green and low-carbon transition of the industrial and supply chains, and better tackling global challenges such as climate change.