BEIJING — Digital trade has become a critical driving force in the recovery of global trade, according to Chinese officials.

"Digital trade, as an important component of the digital economy, is an important link connecting domestic and international digital markets," said Vice-Minister of Commerce Sheng Qiuping at the Summit Forum on Digital Trade Development Trend and Frontier, part of the ongoing 2022 China International Fair for Trade in Services.

The rapid development of cross-border e-commerce has greatly alleviated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global trade, Sheng added.

The scale of China's digital economy expanded from 11 trillion yuan (about $1.6 trillion) to 45.5 trillion yuan from 2012 to 2021, with its proportion in gross domestic product growing from 21.6 percent to 39.8 percent.

Echoing Sheng's views, Xu Xiaolan, vice-minister of industry and information technology, said accelerating the development of digital trade is of great significance for enhancing the resilience of economic development, and promoting the recovery of global trade.

The Ministry of Commerce will continue to deepen opening-up so as to foster innovation and development of digital trade, Sheng said, adding that policy support, platform building and international cooperation will be strengthened.

Xu said the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will strive to optimize the network layout, boost the construction of digital infrastructure and enhance digital governance for the development of digital trade.