Chinese Economy Can Only Continue to Open: Commerce Minister

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China’s commerce minister has extolled the benefits of greater opening for the country’s economy at a recent meeting with overseas financial and industry executives held in Beijing.

At the meeting held on 17 September Zhong Shan (钟山) said that “history has proven that openness brings progress, and closure brings backwardness…in future the vigour of China’s opening will be greater and the level will be higher,” according to a report from state-owned media.

Participants in the meeting with Zhong included executives from the Cohen Group, Emerson Electric, HSBC, Samsung and Toyota.

With regard to escalating Sino-US trade tensions Zhong said that there would be no winners from a trade war, and that cooperation between China and the United States was the only correct option.

Zhong also addressed concerns about intellectual property rights, telling executives that a “successful enterprise cannot depend upon infringement of intellectual property rights to develop,” and that China would “continue to expand the vigour of protection for intellectual property rights, and provide enterprises with a better commercial operating environment.”