Service trade between China, B&R countries surpasses $120b

BEIJING - China's service trade with countries and regions along the Belt and Road (B&R) reached over $120 billion last year, according to the Ministry of Commerce (MOC).

In 2018, the import-export volume of the service trade between China and Belt and Road countries and regions amounted to $121.7 billion, accounting for 15.4 percent of China's service trade, said Wang Bingnan, vice minister of the MOC.

China has been the world's second-largest country in service trade for five consecutive years, with the total volume reaching 5.24 trillion yuan ($759 billion) in 2018, up 11.5 percent year on year, MOC data showed.

The share of service trade in China's total foreign trade went up from 11.1 percent in 2012 to 14.7 percent in 2018, according to the MOC.

China has established bilateral cooperation mechanisms on service trade with 14 countries, endowing the country with a more diversified service trade market, said Wang.

The 2019 China International Fair for Trade in Services will open on May 28 in Beijing and last for five days, attracting 130 countries and regions and 21 international organizations.

Among the delegations, 98 come from the Belt and Road Initiative partner countries. A series of themed activities will be held during the fair, including forums on service trade cooperation.