China has been committed to the multilateral trading system and has brought certainty to the global economy, according to the Trade and Development Report 2025 released on Wednesday in Beijing by the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation (CAITEC) of the Ministry of Commerce.
Focusing on issues such as trade, finance, and the reshaping of the global economic landscape, the report indicates that global trade faces challenges, as uncertainties in tariff policies and trade barriers are exerting pressure on multilateral economic and trade cooperation and posing significant risks and new challenges for developing countries.
Although trade is being reshaped amid new changes and uncertainties, over 70 percent of global trade flows still adhere to World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, according to the report.
China firmly upholds the multilateral trading system, providing certainty and stability to the world, and has consistently been a leader in the development of the Global South, said the report.
"China has made several important steps this year in particular. First of all, it has been a leading diversifier in terms of trade partners. Your premier announced at one of the summits this year that China will no longer seek special and differentiated treatment in new and forthcoming negotiations. It's an important sign and signal to others. I think bilaterally, the country has also announced zero tariffs for a lot of developing countries, in particular, from Africa to newly expanding Chinese market here. So, these are very important concrete steps to facilitate trade integration and keep the openness of major economies and overall systemic diversification going," said Anastasia Nesvetailova, director of macroeconomic and development policy branch of the UNCTAD.
The report said the global trade and finance are closely interconnected, with over 90 percent of world trade relying on global financial infrastructure. Therefore, reforming global financial governance will be a key focus in the next phase.
China upholds multilateral trading system, provides certainty to world: UN report
Neil Bush, founder and chair of the George H.W. Bush Foundation for U.S.-China Relations, has hailed the warming of China-U.S. relations and highlighted the enduring resilience of China's economy.
Bush spoke on the sidelines of the 2025 International Symposium on the Peaceful Use of Space Technology – Health (IPSPACE 2025) in Boao, a coastal town in China's island province of Hainan. He pointed to the recent meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart, Donald Trump, as a key step toward improving bilateral ties, despite persistent trade tensions.
"I think it's improving. It's reached a kind of an all-time low recently. But the fact that the presidents met and there's been more exchanges, there's been, I think a better understanding established, and you can see signs from Washington that there's an easing of tensions, which I'm very, very happy to see. I still think that there are going to be challenges with our bilateral trade relationship. I'm concerned that our government believes that tariffs are going to help America create jobs and create wealth in America. And I think that's a false thesis for an economic policy. So I'm concerned there may not be much negotiating on the issue of tariffs. Otherwise, the bilateral relationship seems to be warming and improving, which I'm very happy about," said Bush.
Bush also praised China's economic progress and its leading role in shaping an AI-driven future.
"You can never count China out. There have been many, many projections over the past 20 to 30 years of China's demise. 'Experts' predicted that China is going to go down. The reality is China is very resilient, and there's so much activity going on here. We're at an IP space conference. There's a lot of discussion about innovation and finance and capital and all the new technologies that fall out of AI's development. There's a lot going on, not just in China, but clearly China is playing a critical role in building the new economy, the transition economy from kind of the old way to the AI-driven way," said Bush.
Bush also highlighted the benefits that China's economic development has brought to improving people's livelihoods.
"China's resilient. China's economy, hopefully, will continue to grow. I happen to believe that as economies grow, people benefit and the role of government should be to provide benefits to its people. So our American capitalist system has worked in America to make us a very strong country where people are enjoying all kinds of benefits from wealth. China, likewise, the people of China are benefiting from economics. So I applaud the economic development in China, which is helping to improve the life of more and more millions of people," he said.
Bush China Foundation chair hails improvement in China-US ties
