Cross-border e-commerce was hotly discussed at the two sessions, and many universities added related majors

Affected by the global epidemic, consumer shopping habits have changed, and the traffic of e-commerce platforms has increased significantly. When the global manufacturing supply chain was hit by the epidemic, the stable supply chain advantage of "Made in China" provided a good opportunity for Chinese brands to expand overseas markets, and China's cross-border e-commerce industry also ushered in rapid development.

According to a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Commerce, in recent years, China's new foreign trade formats have flourished and continued to innovate. China's cross-border e-commerce has grown nearly 10 times in five years and will continue to maintain double-digit growth in 2021. According to customs statistics, China's total cross-border e-commerce imports and exports reached 1.98 trillion yuan in 2021, an increase of 15% over the same period, of which exports amounted to 1.44 trillion yuan, an increase of 24.5%.

Currently, China is the world's largest B2C cross-border e-commerce transaction market, with bright prospects for future development. Cross-border e-commerce has also become one of the industries strongly supported by the country.

"Cross-border e-commerce" hotly discussed at the two sessions

During this year's National "Two Sessions", "cross-border e-commerce" also became one of the hot topics.

In his government work report on March 5, Premier Li Keqiang proposed to expand high-level opening-up and promote steady development of foreign trade and foreign investment .

The report also proposed: Take multiple measures to stabilize foreign trade. Expand the coverage of export credit insurance to small, medium and micro foreign trade enterprises, strengthen export credit support, optimize foreign exchange services, speed up the progress of export tax rebates, and help foreign trade enterprises stabilize orders and production.

We will accelerate the development of new foreign trade formats and models, give full play to the role of cross-border e-commerce, and support the construction of a number of overseas warehouses. We will innovate and develop service trade and digital trade, and promote the implementation of the negative list for cross-border service trade. We will deepen the reform of customs facilitation, accelerate the construction of an international logistics system, and help reduce costs and improve efficiency in foreign trade.

According to statistics, this is the ninth consecutive year that cross-border e-commerce has been mentioned in the government work report.

In 2014, the term "cross-border e-commerce" was mentioned for the first time in the government work report, and it was proposed to "expand the cross-border e-commerce pilot program." The 2015 government work report again proposed to "expand the comprehensive cross-border e-commerce pilot program."

The 2016 Government Work Report proposed expanding cross-border e-commerce pilot programs, supporting companies in building a number of “overseas warehouses” for export products, and promoting the development of comprehensive foreign trade service companies.

The 2017 Government Work Report proposed to improve measures to promote the development of foreign trade and add 12 new comprehensive cross-border e-commerce pilot zones.

The 2018 Government Work Report proposed the establishment of 13 comprehensive cross-border e-commerce pilot zones, with a "single window" for international trade covering the entire country, and the average customs clearance time for goods shortened by more than half.

The 2019 Government Work Report proposed to "establish a number of new cross-border e-commerce comprehensive pilot zones" and "reform and improve support policies for new business forms such as cross-border e-commerce."

The 2020 Government Work Report proposes to accelerate the development of new business forms such as cross-border e-commerce and enhance international freight capabilities.

The 2021 Government Work Report proposes to stabilize processing trade, develop new business forms and models such as cross-border e-commerce, and support enterprises in exploring diversified markets.

Looking at the government work reports over the years, the content related to cross-border e-commerce covers all aspects: overseas warehouse construction, foreign trade service enterprises, cross-border e-commerce comprehensive pilot zones, customs clearance of goods, stable processing trade, international freight capacity ... From these contents, we can also see the government's attention and support for cross-border e-commerce.

This is inseparable from the rapid development and broad prospects of cross-border e-commerce.

As early as 2018, China has become the world's largest B2C cross-border e-commerce export economy. Faced with a huge base, cross-border e-commerce has maintained rapid development. The "14th Five-Year Plan for E-commerce Development" report pointed out that in 2021, China's cross-border e-commerce exports will reach 1.44 trillion yuan, an increase of 24.5%. It is estimated that by 2025, China's cross-border e-commerce transaction volume will reach 2.5 trillion yuan.

According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics and public information, the overall scale of China's cross-border e-commerce market has reached 14.6 trillion yuan in 2021 , with a compound annual growth rate of nearly 18% over the past five years. At the same time, China's traditional foreign trade is gradually shifting to online trade, and the penetration rate is showing an upward trend year by year. In 2021, the overall penetration rate of cross-border e-commerce reached 40%.

Four universities in Guangzhou add cross-border e-commerce majors

As cross-border e-commerce becomes more and more popular, the demand for related talents is also growing, and colleges and universities across the country are also following the trend to open related majors. A few days ago, the Ministry of Education announced the latest filing and approval results of undergraduate majors in ordinary colleges and universities in 2021. A total of 29 colleges and universities across the country have been approved to open cross-border e-commerce majors.

Among them, South China Normal University, Guangdong University of Finance and Economics, Guangzhou Huashang University, and Guangzhou Technology and Business College are listed. Guangzhou has become the region with the largest number of newly added universities with cross-border e-commerce majors.

According to relevant statistics, including the four newly added universities, there are currently 34 general universities and vocational colleges in Guangzhou that have opened cross-border e-commerce majors.

In December 2021, Guangdong Province issued the "Several Policy Measures on Promoting the High-Quality Development of Cross-border E-commerce", including talent training for cross-border e-commerce and financial support for related enterprises, providing more practical guarantees for the development of related enterprises.

In addition, it is worth mentioning that last year the Guangzhou Municipal Bureau of Commerce also implemented the "Several Measures for Guangzhou to Seize RCEP Opportunities and Promote the Innovation and Development of Cross-border E-commerce" (RCEP).

In the policy, the Guangzhou Municipal Bureau of Commerce specifically emphasized the need to seize the RCEP opportunity and strengthen professional talent training. While introducing professional talents and strengthening professional talent training, it also opened a cross-border e-commerce major and encouraged qualified general colleges and vocational schools to open cross-border e-commerce majors or courses in line with the actual needs of industrial development.

Cross-border e-commerce is favorable, Guangdong ranks among the top

According to Qichacha data, there are 33,900 existing cross-border e-commerce related companies in China . In 2021, the number of cross-border e-commerce related companies increased by 72.20%, reaching 10,900.

In terms of regional distribution of the increase, Guangdong still ranks first, with 9,291 cross-border e-commerce related enterprises . Zhejiang and Shandong rank second and third, with 3,836 and 3,207 related enterprises respectively.

In terms of city distribution, Shenzhen ranks first, with 3,300 cross-border e-commerce related companies , accounting for about one-third of Guangdong Province, followed by Guangzhou and Haikou, with 849 and 376 companies respectively.

Such coastal areas have natural geographical advantages, close to ports and convenient for cargo exports. In addition to geographical advantages, as the province with the largest number of cross-border e-commerce companies, Guangdong cities have also successively introduced relevant policies in recent years to support the development of cross-border e-commerce related companies.

In the past two decades, China has rapidly developed from a minor supporting role in global trade to an important participant, and Chinese-made products are exported almost all over the world. Now on e-commerce platforms such as Amazon, many products with high technology and design are from China, and the giant ship of Chinese brands going overseas is setting sail!

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