At the just-concluded 2022 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS), experts pointed out that digital technology has become a new growth engine for countries and regions involved in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

A report entitled "Digital Trade: Development and Cooperation" was released at the CIFTIS. It shows that the global cross-border trade in digital services exceeded $3.8 trillion in 2021, accounting for 63.6 percent of the total trade in services.

China's digital trade is developing rapidly, with its total imports and exports of digital services growing 22.3 percent year-on-year in 2021 to reach $359.69 billion.

Zhang Xiangchen, deputy director-general of the World Trade Organization, said digitalization is fostering a new circle of innovation in services, which presents great opportunities for economic growth.

According to Wang Xiaohong, deputy head of the information department of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, the digital Silk Road plays a leading role in high-quality BRI cooperation.

At the 2022 CIFTIS, some enterprises from BRI countries also voiced their hopes of conducting further digital trade cooperation with China.