Digital intelligence empowers the service trade— 2025 China International Fair for Trade in Services concluded successfully

From September 10 to 14, 2025, the 2025 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) was grandly held at the Shougang Park in Beijing and concluded successfully. With the theme of “Digital Intelligence Navigating, Revitalizing Services Trade,” this CIFTIS focused on the digitalization, intelligence, and green development trends of services trade, presenting a feast of services trade to the world.

The China International Fair for Trade in Services (CITS) is one of the largest comprehensive exhibitions for global services trade. It serves as a vital window for China’s opening up and a key link for global services trade cooperation. Since its inception in 2012, the CITS has undergone continuous optimization and upgrading over the years, bearing witness to the open, innovative, and vigorous development of China’s services sector and services trade. The successful CITS 2025 will provide a key platform for China’s service sector to open up to the outside world, inject new impetus into global economic and trade growth, and propel global services trade towards a broader direction.

This year’s CIFTIS attracted over 480 Fortune 500 companies and industry leaders to participate in the exhibition, accounting for over a quarter of all exhibitors. The number and proportion of leading companies both exceeded those of the previous CIFTIS. Leading enterprises in quantum technology and artificial intelligence, including the host province of Anhui, made a collective appearance. Beijing also selected nearly 140 “Beijing Services” products for display, showcasing the diverse and high-quality “Chinese Services.” A total of 113 companies and organizations, including Fortune 500 companies, unicorns, national “specialized, sophisticated, and innovative” small giants, and industry associations, unveiled 198 achievements in artificial intelligence, financial technology, healthcare, and green and low-carbon development. These included 109 new product launches in precision medicine, ultra-high-definition audio-visual, optical quantum computers, and bionic cell sensors. These innovative firsts are leading the development of the CIFTIS industry.

The China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) established an open and shared platform for communication and cooperation for global service trade enterprises, promoting the internationalization of services trade and enabling businesses from all over the world to share opportunities in the Chinese market and achieve mutual benefit. During the CIFTIS, 13 thematic forums, 81 special forums, and 75 business negotiation and promotion events were held. A total of 27 negotiation and promotion events were held by 21 countries and international organizations, and 11 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities. Relevant business associations and enterprises held 48 industry exchange events, including the CIFTIS overseas matchmaking series. During the CIFTIS, the digital platform’s supply and demand hall launched over 3,000 matchmaking projects, and the “Business Appointment” function initiated nearly 8,500 invitations, providing efficient and direct customer connections. For example, Siemens showcased its smart industrial solutions at the CIFTIS, securing cooperation agreements with several Chinese companies and further expanding its business presence in China.

China continues to uphold the principles of openness, inclusiveness, and win-win cooperation in the services trade sector, actively promoting the implementation of a series of opening-up policies and measures. In the first half of 2025, China’s total import and export of services reached 3.88726 trillion yuan, an 8% year-on-year increase, reaching a record high for the same period. China has fully implemented a negative list for cross-border services trade, applying the principle of national treatment to services trade not listed. This has streamlined approval processes, improved regulatory and policy transparency, and reduced the costs of cross-border services trade. At the same time, China is accelerating comprehensive pilot programs for expanding the opening-up of the services sector, steadily advancing cross-border services trade and the gradual opening-up of the services sector. Pilot programs for innovative development of services trade are being deepened in 28 provinces and municipalities, promoting the removal or relaxation of restrictive measures in areas such as transportation, education, healthcare, finance, and professional services, and introducing 26 opening-up measures. Furthermore, China has issued the “Opinions on Promoting High-Quality Development of Services Trade through High-Level Opening-up,” proposing 20 tasks and over 70 policy measures to enhance the level of openness in services trade and promote the cross-border flow of innovative factors.

The 2025 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) fully showcased China ‘s achievements and potential in services trade, providing strong support for global services trade and the development of the world economy. We look forward to the CIFTIS continuing to play an important role in promoting high-quality development of services trade and making an indispensable contribution to global economic stability and prosperity.