(JW Insights) Jul 10 -- China convened the Global Digital Economy Conference on July 4 in a bid to forge “open and win-win” international partnerships amid growing geopolitical tensions, reported South China Morning Post(SCMP) on July 5.

Representatives of 18 cities around the world, including the American cities of San Francisco and Irvine, as well as London, were invited to attend the event and jointly sign a cooperation initiative that vows to promote an open and innovative network that will bolster the digital economy.

The move came as Beijing’s policymakers have largely pinned hopes for future growth on the digital economy, which already accounts for 41.5 per cent of the national gross domestic product, and which Beijing regards as a new competition lane with the United States.

However, Beijing still faces tough challenges from Washington, which has restricted exports of hi-tech products to China, including semiconductors and chipmaking equipment, and attempted to decouple some supply chains.

The four-day event held in the Chinese capital city is centred on the theme of “Data Drives Development, Intelligence Leads the Future”, presenting a multidimensional view of how technologies such as the digital economy and artificial intelligence are changing the future, through various activities and exhibitions.

“This cooperation initiative mainly promotes exchanges and cooperation among cities around the world, and to share an open and mutually beneficial market environment,” Wang Lei, deputy head of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology, said at its opening ceremony.

The value of China’s digital economy reached RMB50.2 trillion ($6.95 trillion) last year, ranking second globally after the United States, according to a report released in April by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, a governmental think tank.

It has also grown fast, with an average annual expansion rate of 14.15 per cent since 2016.

“Authorities need to promote the deep integration of the digital economy and the real economy,” Zheng Shanjie, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, said in an article published on July 4.

“It is important to accelerate digital industrialisation and industrial digitisation, not only cultivating emerging industries such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things and quantum computing, but also using digital technology to transform manufacturing, service and agricultural industries comprehensively,” the top economic planner said.

Beijing applied to join Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA), a bloc including Singapore, New Zealand and Chile, in November 2021, according to the SCMP report.

(Gao J)