Italian officials at the service trade fair: they believe that the Italian government will properly handle the topic of "the Belt and Road" without damaging China Italy relations
Multiple display boards are uniformly marked with the red and green "ITALIA" logo, and the long logos of Italian representative enterprises are neatly arranged below... The country exhibition area of the National Convention Center of the 2023 World Trade Fair in Services features a simple style and bright colors in the Italian National Pavilion. Zhang Baolong Bruno, Chief Representative of the Beijing Office of the Italian Foreign Trade Commission and Chief Coordinator of China and Mongolia, stated in an interview with Global Times reporters in the exhibition area that the Fair for Trade in Services is the largest comprehensive exhibition in the global service trade field. Italy is full of expectations and is here to showcase the development of Italy's financial services, insurance services and other service industries to the world on this platform.
On September 2nd, visitors visited the Italian booth located at the National Convention Center. Photo by People's Daily reporter Weng Qiyu
"Especially, this is the first post pandemic trade fair in services, where people can freely travel and communicate. At the trade fair, we can truly discuss cooperation face-to-face." Zhang Baolong Bruno repeatedly emphasized the importance of "security" in an interview with reporters. This security represents the stability and smoothness of the global supply chain, and represents the stability and development of the global trade order. This is also why he pays so much attention to security.
Regarding the cooperation between China and Italy in the field of service trade, Zhang Baolong Bruno said that the two countries have their own strengths in the field of service trade, and have potential for cooperation in agricultural technology, healthcare, financial technology, and other areas. In particular, both China and Italy are cultural powers, and cooperation in cultural and artistic fields also has broad cooperation space.
In recent years, uncertainty in the global economic environment has been increasing, and the globalization and liberalization of trade and investment are being challenged. The risk is increasing, and cooperation is becoming difficult. Zhang Baolong Bruno believes that it is normal for global industrial chains to undergo adjustments based on the development of competitive advantages of various countries, but there have been no significant changes. Although many problems have been exposed, the experience of the past few decades shows that the process of global economic integration is still moving forward, and trade and investment will not experience a large-scale regression.
Italy is the only country in the G7 that has signed the "the Belt and Road" initiative, so it is also encountering public opinion pressure from individual western countries. Regarding this, Zhang Baolong Bruno said, "I don't have any relevant news about this yet, it's a political topic. But I believe the Italian government will handle it properly in the best possible way and not damage relations with China."
The bilateral trade between China and Italy has also attracted attention recently. Data shows that from 2018 to 2021, Italy's exports to China increased by 20%. But there are voices in Italy that believe that although Italy's exports to China have increased, the growth rate of China's exports to Italy is getting faster, "further widening the trade deficit.".
Chinese Ambassador to Italy Jia Guide explained and clarified this in an interview with the Italian newspaper Milan Finance on June 10th. Jia Guide stated that the trade deficit is mainly due to the two countries being in different stages of economic development, global industrial division of labor, and differences in their respective industrial development layouts. As an industrialized country, Italy imports raw materials, components, and semi-finished products from developing countries such as China, processes and produces them into high-end consumer goods, and exports them to developed economies. Therefore, overall, it shows a trade deficit with developing countries and a surplus with developed countries. Jia Guide stated that China has no intention of pursuing a trade surplus with Italy, and a deficit does not mean that Italy has "suffered losses" in its trade with China. The raw materials and industrial semi-finished products exported by China contribute to stabilizing the supply chain, controlling costs, and maintaining competitiveness for Italian enterprises, while high-quality and affordable consumer goods help to control inflation.
Zhang Baolong Bruno said in an interview with Global Times reporters on this issue that Italy regards China as its main market and partner, and there is indeed an imbalance in trade between China and Italy. Italy needs to expand its market in China and create conditions for more Italian goods to enter China. Jia Guide also stated in June that as long as Italy does not impose too many restrictions on export products, China's imports from Italy will also increase, and the trade between the two countries is expected to become more balanced in a dynamic manner.
In the interview, Zhang Baolong Bruno also told Global Times reporters, "We have witnessed China becoming an economic power, bringing benefits to the people of the world." He said that next year will be the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Italy, which is an important milestone in the development of bilateral relations for both sides.
