Report on initiatives submitted

Developing a multilateral trading system, promoting green financing and creating a global electronic trade platform, known as the eWTP, are the main initiatives in the policy advice report that has been delivered to the G20 leaders ahead of their summit in Hangzhou on Sept 4 and 5, said Yu Ping, China's chief representative in the B20.

"With their strong economic foundation and political influence, G20 members are fully capable of making major breakthroughs in terms of reducing trade protectionism," said Yu, who is China's B20 sherpa.

A sherpa is the personal representative of a G20 member head of State or government, while the Business 20, or B20, leads engagement with the G20 governments on behalf of the international business community.

Yu said the B20 members are also encouraging progress on the World Trade Organization's Trade Facilitation Agreement so it can come into effect at an early date.

Consensus on the agreement was reached in Bali in December 2013, and, since then, the WTO members have been undertaking legal reviews of the agreement. It will come into force once two-thirds of the 155 WTO members have completed their domestic ratification process.

India formally ratified it in April, becoming the 76th member to accept the TFA.

The B20 summit this year had six issues on its agenda: financing growth, trade and investment, infrastructure, development of small and medium-sized enterprises, employment and anti-corruption.

Among the priorities set out in the B20 report are the construction of the eWTP, a global alliance for infrastructure development, and promoting sustainable innovation.

Feng Yaoxiang, the spokesman for the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, said the B20 members reached consensus on helping SMEs integrate into the global economy through the proposed electronic platform for global trade, multi-channel financing and improvements to the regulatory environment.

Wang Tongsan, an economist with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the government's think tank, said the report this year has a big Chinese footprint.

"The report not only addresses the general concerns of the international business community, but also outlines the Chinese business community's approach toward guiding the discussions on each topic, as well as plans for engagement in global economic policymaking," Wang said.

China formally took over the G20 presidency of 2016 on Dec 1, 2015, and the B20 summit this year is scheduled to gather nearly 1,000 business leaders in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province.