China's AI development fuels growth in services trade

The rapid technological development in China has been accelerating the growth of its international services trade, with artificial intelligence and robotics emerging as key drivers of the trend.

At this year's China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS), which opened on Wednesday in Beijing, exhibitors showcased a range of AI-powered solutions aimed at enhancing consumer experiences and industrial efficiency.

Among the highlights was a pair of smart glasses capable of estimating food calories and offering dietary advice based on individual health data. A user can simply glance at piece of food and ask the AI assistant to provide an estimate on nutritional content.

"We've applied a new artificial intelligence technology, namely, multimodal recognition, to estimate the caloric content of food. It also can create customized health management based on users' health data and dietary habits. With the development of the artificial intelligence technology, it will create new growth drivers for the consumption of services," said Wu Hainan, a representative for China Telecom.

Beyond consumer tech, industrial applications are also expanding, driving the growth of trade in services.

At the Humanoid Robotics Data Training Center in Beijing, robots were being trained to complete a variety of tasks, including common household chores.

"We are teaching robots to open a fridge door. It may look simple, but it is not easy to do. Robots typically produce a steady force, but opening a fridge door requires a sudden burst of force. That's why we have to train robots for hundreds, even thousands of times, to help them learn about this nuance and master the skill through practice. Look, it's just opened the door," said Yuan Jun, an employee of the Humanoid Robotics Data Training Center.

As the training progressed, real-time data was continuously collected for later use in refining AI systems. This data has also seen growing demand from international clients.

"The data generated for artificial intelligence training is our final product for trade. We produce nearly 10,000 data entries every day, and some of the data is delivered to our partners in North America. Since the beginning of this year, demand for AI-related data from industrial sectors and research sectors has surged, creating a new business opportunity for us," said Yuan Qinni, a cooperation director at the Humanoid Robotics Data Training Center.

China's artificial intelligence industry has experienced significant progress, maintaining annual growth rates of over 20 percent in recent years.

Under the country's "AI+" initiative, announced earlier this year, authorities aim to foster new service models, with applications such as virtual tour guides, intelligent medical assistants, and AI learning companions expected to become increasingly accessible.

Since its inception in 2012, CIFTIS has brought together enterprises from around the world to share opportunities stemming from China's opening up and development of trade in services.

China's AI development fuels growth in services trade

China will strengthen fiscal and financial coordination to amplify policy effectiveness, experts said as the draft central and local budgets for 2026 were unveiled on Friday at the ongoing fourth session of the 14th National People's Congress.

According to the draft central and local budgets for 2026, 1.3 trillion yuan (190 billion U.S. dollars) of ultra-long special treasury bonds will be issued to provide continued support for the implementation of major national strategies and security capacity-building in key areas and for large-scale equipment upgrades and consumer goods trade-in programs.

Ultra-long special treasury bonds totaling 800 billion yuan will be allocated to support the implementation of major national strategies and security capacity-building in key areas, and 250 billion yuan in ultra-long special treasury bonds will be earmarked for consumer goods trade-in programs.

The country will refine these programs in terms of their scope and subsidy standards, and continue to support the scrapping and replacement of automobiles, home appliance trade-in schemes, and purchases of new digital and smart products.

China will also set up a 100-billion-yuan fiscal-financial coordination fund to boost domestic demand. The fund will support consumption and private investment through loan interest subsidies, financing guarantee, and risk compensation.

"Fiscal and monetary policies are the two major macroeconomic tools for macro-control, and their coordination is crucial. For instance, fiscal funds primarily serve as a guiding role, while financial institutions provide the capital. When fiscal guidance and financial resources are combined, the synergistic effect creates a result greater than the sum of its parts," said Yang Zhiyong, director of the Chinese Academy of Fiscal Sciences.

"By leveraging interest subsidies, we can mobilize substantial credit from financial institutions, thereby naturally stimulating consumption. The Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with the People's Bank of China, has introduced highly innovative measures, such as providing guarantees for the issuance of corporate bonds by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and compensating investors for losses. I believe the leveraging effect, making minimal efforts for maximum results, will become even more potent," said Yao Dongmin, director of the Center for China Fiscal Development under the Central University of Finance and Economics.

China's top legislature opened its annual session on Thursday morning at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, with Chinese President Xi Jinping and other Party and state leaders attending the opening meeting alongside more than 2,700 NPC deputies. This year's NPC session is scheduled to run till March 12.

China to strengthen fiscal, financial coordination to amplify policy effectiveness: experts