On November 7, 2019, the rhythmic overture of golden autumn celebrated the grand opening of the 2nd China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai! Just a few days ago, faculty and students from Shanghai MICEE Institute were invited to attend the 2nd Forum on Spillover Effects of China International Import Expo. The forum was co-hosted by Shanghai Huaxia Economic Research Academy, West Hongqiao Business District and Yangtze River Delta Think Tank Alliance, with the theme of contributing ideas and suggestions to the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta region. Nearly 200 guests and representatives including Sha Hailin, Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of Shanghai Municipal People's Congress, Yang Jianrong, Chairman of Shanghai Council for the Promotion of International Trade, Li Zhiwei, Deputy Director of Shanghai Municipal Government Research Office, Zhang Xinsheng, former Director of Shanghai CPPCC Economic Committee, attended the forum. Professor Zhang Min, doctoral supervisor at the School of Journalism and Communications of Shanghai University and Executive Dean of Shanghai MICEE Institute, hosted the expert speech session.

The forum focused on "Sharing Cooperation Opportunities in the Yangtze River Delta Integration Demonstration Zone" and featured informative and wonderful content. Over a dozen experts, scholars and industry elites gathered to share valuable experiences and discuss development plans. Mr. Sha Hailin, Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of Shanghai Municipal People's Congress and President of Shanghai People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, delivered a guest speech, fully affirming that WestHongqiao has become a major venue for China's public diplomacy and a new platform for opening up, looking forward to the guests having thorough communication and exchanges, sparking ideas, undertaking CIIE spillover effects, sharing cooperation opportunities, standing at the forefront of China's opening up, contributing ideas and gathering strengths for greater development, and wishing the forum complete success.

In hosting the expert speech session, Professor Zhang Min proposed that the import expo is fundamentally significant for balanced, full and sustainable development. Competitive display, diverse choices, interactive cognition and decentralized decision-making of world-class brands will bring people a better life, provide more pressing requirements for the supply-side reform, and inject stronger impetus into the world economy. Spillover effects refer to the positive externalities on regional economic and social development caused by large-scale concentrated display and transaction of global brand goods and services. CIIE will create an international trade center, Asia-Pacific consumer market, global cooperation platform, technology innovation base, service hub in the Yangtze River Delta, and high-level opening-up demonstration zone, providing pioneering pilots and institutional contributions for further expanding opening-up and deepening reforms. Connecting three provinces and one city, WestHongqiao can promote integrated development by implementing General Secretary Xi Jinping's proposal of "aligning policies, connecting infrastructure, smoothing trade, financing flows, and bonding people". The demonstration zone should become a model of "five connects", high-level opening-up and high-quality development, and explore and accumulate successful experiences for cooperation in the Yangtze River Delta, the Yangtze Economic Belt and the Belt and Road Initiative. As CIIE continues annually, its spillover effects will benefit the people as energy accumulates.

Chen Shi, 2019 Sun Yefang Prize winner and professor at the School of Economics of Fudan University, Hu Feng, Chairman of Shanghai Association of Foreign Investment, Yang Yaqin, Chairperson of the Think Tank Development Foundation of Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, Jiang Ying, CEO of Deloitte Asia Pacific Market and Vice Chairman of Deloitte China, gave wonderful speeches on "Green Finance Promoting New Opportunities for Yangtze River Delta Integration and West Hongqiao Development", "Policies, Platforms and Mechanisms for Foreign-invested Sci-tech Innovation in the Yangtze River Delta", "The Role of Social Think Tanks in Yangtze River Delta Integration and West Hongqiao Functional Construction", and "Reinforcing CIIE Spillover Effects to Promote World-class New Retail Network Layout in the Yangtze River Delta", winning rounds of applause from the audience.

In the ensuing panel discussion session hosted by Wang Duo, deputy editor-in-chief of Shanghai Jiefang Daily, participants including Zhang Li, director of the Opening-up Department of Shanghai Development and Reform Commission, Lin Yuxuan, secretary general of Sino-Russian "Belt and Road" Development Research Association, Tian Xiaohong, deputy secretary general of Silk Road Chamber of International Commerce, Pan Li, founding CEO of Shanghai Guoguan Investment, Xue Feng, chairman of Shanghai Yaying Shipping Co., Ltd., and Zou Yanling, vice president for global programs at Bay Area Council of San Francisco, carried out wonderful discussions on "The Impact of CIIE on Trade and Investment in Various Countries and Analysis of WestHongqiao's International Cooperation Prospects".

During the forum, Shanghai Mobile Internet Application Promotion Center, Shanghai WestHongqiao Business Development Co., Ltd. and Shanghai Huaxia Economic Research Academy also signed a strategic cooperation framework agreement on jointly building the "Yangtze River Delta Digital Innovation Joint Laboratory".

Hosting the China International Import Expo is a major initiative taken by China in the new era to implement high-level opening-up and promote high-quality development. At the keynote speech of the first CIIE, General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed elevating the integration of the Yangtze River Delta to a national strategy, making it the carrier and demonstration zone for CIIE spillover effects. It is learned that the second CIIE will see the participation of over 3,000 enterprises from more than 150 countries and regions, with the exhibition area increasing from 270,000 to 330,000 square meters. More new products, technologies and services will make their "global debut and first exhibition in China", enabling CIIE a platform of "Specialized and Sophisticated SMEs". Integrating exhibition, forum, trading, cultural and diplomatic events, CIIE will continue to amplify its comprehensive spillover effects, bringing new opportunities, challenges and space for the development of China and the world. As an important platform for building a modern market system and open world economy, the exhibition industry will continue to play an important strategic role in China's economic and social development. Shanghai University School of Journalism, Shanghai MICEE Institute and related majors will continue contributing wisdom and strength for the success of CIIE!