HAIKOU — Despite the rise of unilateralism and protectionism, China has always delivered on its commitments to open up further and share opportunities with the world.

The first China International Consumer Products Expo is scheduled to be held in the southern province of Hainan from May 7 to 10. It is China's latest major sincere move to promote trade liberalization and facilitation, and it is a key measure toward the construction of the Hainan free trade port as well as the largest free trade zone (FTZ) nationwide.

A total of 648 international enterprises from 69 countries and regions, and 1,365 international brands will participate in the expo — a demonstration of multinationals' enthusiasm for and confidence in China, which has a population of 1.4 billion and a middle-income group that exceeds 400 million.

Over the past decade or so, China has taken a series of solid steps to continuously expand its high-level opening-up, ranging from FTZs across the country to new major fairs such as the China International Fair for Trade in Services in Beijing, the China International Import Expo in Shanghai, and the consumer products expo in Hainan. These events have become the country's major fair platforms for opening-up, together with the China Import and Export Fair — known as the Canton Fair, which was launched in 1957 in Guangdong province.

China has also lowered tariffs, shortened its negative list for foreign investment, and eased market access in a number of sectors such as automobiles and financing for global investors.

Amid the global COVID-19 pandemic, the high number of participants demonstrates that more foreign-funded companies are eyeing the great potential of the Chinese market.

The first consumer products expo is set to inject new impetus into the transformation of the island province into an international tourism consumption center. The event not only serves as a new window into China's huge consumption market but also provides more opportunities for cooperation among countries, and contributes to the recovery and growth of the world economy.

"The policies of the Hainan free trade port and its international business environment have created unprecedented opportunities for multinational enterprises," said Kitty Liu, managing director of Blackmores Group in China, which has already confirmed its participation in the expo.

Openness brings development and progress. The world is becoming more interconnected and interdependent. In the face of the ongoing trend of economic globalization that features openness and integration, acts of unilateralism and protectionism flout the laws of economic development and will result in nothing but harming of the interests of others, and will bring no benefits for their initiators.

China will never close its doors to the world but will open even wider. With the China International Consumer Products Expo, China will continue to honor its commitments to further opening-up, build an open world economy, and achieve shared growth with other countries.