President of the World Bank (WB) spoke highly of China's continuous commitment to reform and opening up on Movember 5, as they attended the inaugural import expo held in Shanghai.

The expo, the first China International Import Expo (CIIE) on November 5 to 10, has attracted more than 3,600 companies from 172 countries, regions and international organizations to showcase their achievements and to look for more opportunities for international cooperation.

While delivering a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the CIIE, Chinese President Xi Jinping said that the event is "a major policy for China to push for a new round of high-level opening up and a major measure for China to take the initiative to open its market to the world."

He also called for joint efforts to build an open world economy. "All countries should be committed to opening up and oppose protectionism and unilateralism in a clear-cut stand," Xi stressed.

World Bank (WB) President Jim Yong Kim said China has been persistent in opening up despite some domestic pains, which included the hardship of workers in state enterprises which were no longer competitive and for farmers who faced lower market prices.

However, China has helped those affected with a better safety net, active labor market policies and lower agriculture taxes and fees. "So by ensuring that all layers of the society gained from the opening up, China ensured the continued support for the reform program. This is the lesson for everyone," said Kim.

China rose 32 places this year on the WB's Doing Business index, said Kim, who particularly hailed the country's success by dropping the poverty rate in the less wealthy provinces by encouraging e-commerce.

He called on all countries to strengthen the multilateral trading system.

"In recent years, trade liberalization has stalled. And in just the last few years, we have seen the acceleration of the return to protectionism," he said, adding that "The escalation of tariffs will negatively affect the entire global growth outlook and slow down the pace of poverty reduction ..."

"Protectionist trade policies can cause a chain reaction as more countries adopt similar measures," he warned, stressing that "We need to continue to support trade reforms that can deliver a greater shared prosperity."

"With trade, we don't have to choose between inclusiveness and economic growth," he noted.

(Xinhua News Agency November 5, 2018)