Expert: RCEP a win-win for member countries

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership will play an active role in promoting economic globalization and helping its member countries better share the benefits of China's economic growth, a senior scholar said on Thursday.

Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and rising protectionism, countries are attaching great importance to stabilizing their supply chain and industrial chain, said Zhao Jinping, former director of the Research Department of Foreign Economic Relations at Development Research Center of the State Council.

At a time when the global trade system faces growing challenges, nations are more and more seeking bilateral or multilateral cooperation in the region to reduce risks and create development opportunities, he told an online forum co-organized by China Development Institute and Strategic Institute for Asia-Pacific.

"From this aspect, the successful signing of RCEP carries significant meaning," he said. "As the world's largest free trade agreement, RCEP will not only bring great impact to its member countries, but also play an active and important role in promoting economic globalization."

He added that cooperation between China and its FTA partners has offered opportunities for those countries to share the benefits of China's economic growth.

"Let's see from the trade growth. The growth rate of imports in China has far surpassed that of exports. Trade surplus between China and its FTA partners fell by about 75 percent in five years. That is a significant improvement in trade balance, especially between China and ASEAN countries and between China and some major RCEP member countries," Zhao said.

"The growth of imports in China is becoming a very important impetus of their economic growth."