Now let’s turn to south China’s Hainan Province where the 2018 annual conference of the Boao Forum for Asia is going on. From April 8th to 11th, participants from around the world gathered there to discuss the future of Asia and the world by addressing hot economic issues that have attracted the attention of economists and experts.
This year the theme of the forum is “An Open and Innovative Asia for a World of Greater Prosperity”, a pertinent and timely one. Asia is becoming a region of more integrated countries forging partnerships in diverse fields, including the economy, environment, trade, technology, education, energy and ecology. In these circumstances “Openness and Innovation” are even more relevant.
This year’s forum has set up four sub-themes that include "Globalization and the Belt and Road Initiative," "Open Asia," "Innovation," and "Re-starting the reform" and is backed up by more than 60 formal discussions.
Asia has maintained stable growth and is expected to lead the world in economic development amid moderate recovery of major economies, according to "Asian Competitiveness Annual Report 2018," which was released Sunday at a press conference.
Zhou Wenzhong stated that trade protection will not become a lasting driving force for economic development, but will limit the sustainability of economic development. Asia’s open economies need to avoid the trap of falling into trade protection.
Recently, the United States has continued to provoke global free trade. The unilateral trade frictions between China and the United States have also become the focus of all parties.
Kent Keld, director of the Center for East Asian Studies at Johns Hopkins University, said that he hopes that both China and the United States can resolve the escalating trade dispute through negotiations.
Kim Yong-chu, president of the Korea Trade Association, said that all parties should work together to overcome the proliferation of trade protectionism and build a community of share future for mankind.
（Source: Jiangsu International Channel)
