According to the Ministry of Commerce, China's total export and import volume for the first seven months of 2021 reached 21.34 trillion yuan ($3.29 trillion), setting a new record for the past 10 years.

That achievement is especially worth cherishing, as it has been realized amid the global economic difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Three factors have contributed to this. The most important has been the constant efforts of the government to improve the business environment and encourage trade entities to realize their full potential. The market supervision department has continued to deepen reforms, enhancing the momentum for the development of foreign trade. Over the past seven months, the exports of private enterprises increased by 30.1 percent, which has, to a large extent, helped the total trade volume grow.

The market regulatory departments have also lowered the market entry threshold for foreign-invested ventures, which has helped foreign-invested ventures enjoy a 17.9 percent increase in exports. In the future, the government will render more support to enterprises engaged in foreign trade.

The second contributing factor has been China's willingness to share the dividends of its big market, which has expanded its import volume. Affected by the pandemic, many major economies have resorted to trade protectionism and some of them have even abused the concept of national security to establish new barriers to trade. In contrast, China has continued to open up and make it easier for foreign companies to tap the potential of its market.

A good example is that China has exempted the fees for companies from some developing countries to attend the Fourth China International Import Expo, to be held in November.

Third but no less important, China has exported large quantities of anti-pandemic medical goods to support global efforts to fight COVID-19. Since the start of the pandemic, China has made its vaccines public goods and has taken the lead in providing help to countries in need and sought to foster anti-pandemic cooperation. Its anti-pandemic goods have already been exported to over 200 countries and regions.

There are still uncertainties facing the global economy and no one is sure when it will recover. But one thing is certain: The Chinese economy will continue to perform robustly and play a positive role in promoting the global recovery.