On April 16, the World Internet Conference (WIC) held the Seminar on Competitiveness Assessment of Cross-Border E-commerce in Xi'an, Northwest China's Shaanxi province. It is a highlight event of the WIC Digital Silk Road Development Forum.

The WIC secretariat introduced the research background, saying that conducting cross-regional and comparative studies is a common practice for international organizations to advance industrial development and share experience.

As an emerging international organization, the WIC aims to organize and compare the development patterns of Cross-Border E-commerce to introduce industry-recognized competitive assessment results, promote mature experience and practices, and facilitate the growth of global Cross-Border E-commerce.

The seminar invited more than 20 experts, including representatives from international organizations, government agencies and leading enterprises in Cross-Border E-commerce, to conduct in-depth discussions on the assessment. 

Speaking at the event were Xue Hong, professor at Beijing Normal University and member of the advisory committee of the United Nations Network of Experts for Paperless Trade and Transport in Asia and the Pacific; Zhao Quan, senior programme officer for trade policy of the International Trade Centre's Division of Market Development; Zhang Juan, deputy director and researcher at the Shanghai Municipal Commerce Development Research Center; Pan Siwei, director of the Hangzhou Innovation Development Center of the China (Zhejiang) Pilot Free Trade Zone under the Hangzhou Municipal Bureau of Commerce; Wang Jian, chairman of the APEC E-Commerce Business Alliance Expert Committee; Chris Brown, director of the British Standards Institution's UK-China Business Environment Programme; Sun Ke, deputy director of the Policy and Economics Research Institute of the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology; Lin Wanti, director of Alibaba's International Policy Research Center; Alamusi, vice-chair of the Beijing Society of E-Commerce Law; Chen Xueguang, deputy director of the Institute of Local Industry and Enterprise Transformation Development at Zhejiang Gongshang University; Li Chuanchuan, researcher at the Academy of China Open Economy Studies at the University of International Business and Economics; Wu Tianxiang, chief analyst at Ebrun Think-Tank; and Zhang Xu, director of public affairs at Cainiao.

They recognized the necessity of the assessment and shared insight into the specific dimensions, indicator system, data selection and outcome forms of the assessment based on their expertise and practical experience.

In his concluding remarks, Ren Xianliang, secretary-general of the WIC, said that the WIC will fully consider the opinions of the participants. In the future, the WIC will leverage its advantages as an international organization and utilize the strength of its working groups, member units and professional think tanks to scientifically and steadily advance the competitive assessment of Cross-Border E-commerce, as well as to introduce research results with international influence. 

These efforts will help create a business environment conducive to healthy industrial development, enable more countries and regions to enjoy the dividends brought by new technologies and formats, and contribute to the building of a community with a shared future in cyberspace.