From November 5 to 10, 2025, the 8th China International Import Expo (CIIE) was held in Shanghai. The expo closely aligns China’s development needs with the global desire for growth, enabling exhibitors from numerous countries to access the vast Chinese market by boarding the CIIE express. Data from the Ministry of Commerce reveals that the massive Chinese market underpinning the CIIE has ranked as the world's second-largest import market for 16 consecutive years. Amidst a turbulent international landscape and global economic uncertainty, the question arises: how can the Chinese consumer market provide greater certainty to the world economy? Addressing this issue, the CCTV News Channel (CCTV-13) special program ‘Guests from Across the Sea’ (Ke Cong Hai Shang Lai) interviewed Professor Yina ZHANG, Director of the FDDI Consumer Big Data Laboratory of the Ministry of Commerce and a professor at the School of Social Development and Public Policy at Fudan University.

Professor Zhang highlighted that China's consumer market currently offers robust certainty, which is manifested in three key areas. First is the certainty of scale: China's 1.4 billion people account for approximately 20% of the global population, comprising both first-tier cities that benchmark against international standards and vast lower-tier markets in third- and fourth-tier cities, creating a landscape that is both massive and diverse. Second is the certainty of opening-up policies: through the annual hosting of the CIIE and the lowering of market access thresholds for foreign investment, China continues to open its doors wider to the world. Third is the certainty of efficiency and innovation: sufficient investment in digital infrastructure and resilient supply chains provide global enterprises with a high-quality and stable business environment.

Translated by Yicheng SU

Full text in Chinese available at:

https://fddi.fudan.edu.cn/89/1e/c18965a755998/page.htm