China International Fair for Trade in Services brings digital technologies, trade in services closer to everyday life

Visitors learning about digital renminbi payments at the exhibition booth for the Digital Currency Research Institute of the People's Bank of China during the China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS). (People's Daily Online/Li Tong)

The China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS), which was held in Beijing from Sept. 2 to 7, provided an immersive experience for visitors to witness first-hand the added convenience brought to their lives through digital technologies and the trade in services.

An exhibition booth for digital finance attracted many visitors to learn more about the digital renminbi and experience digital renminbi payments for the first time. Outside the exhibition venue, many shop exhibitors showed visitors how to create a digital wallet and how to initiate a payment. “After experiencing the digital renminbi, I discovered that digital renminbi payments could be made even in places without Internet access,” said a visitor to the exhibition.

The exhibition booths for financial institutes were also popular at the fair. Liu Ruijie, a financial expert at the Digital China Information Service Company Ltd., expressed that digital technologies can offer a helpful hand for companies in certain scenarios, such as in construction, the provision of financial services, resource accumulation, and corporate management.

Digital technologies have turned agricultural products into marketable goods ready for sale upon picking. A staff member with e-commerce platform Hema Fresh, which was present at the fair, said that digital technologies have facilitated the production, supply and sale of goods, making agricultural production more efficient and providing additional benefits, all while strengthening the overall stability of logistics.

Digital technologies are meanwhile bringing snow and ice activities closer to people’s lives and into their homes. In the sports services exhibition area, visitors were able to experience skating and virtual reality-enabled (VR) skiing, among other simulated sports. Xiao Hong, CEO of Beijing-based movie and gaming company Perfect World, expressed that while developing cutting-edge technologies, culture companies and industry insiders must also enrich the cultural content of their products, making sure that they draw inspiration from traditional Chinese culture and further popularize Chinese culture.

For the first time in its history, this year’s CIFTIS was held at two venues—one at the China National Convention Center and the other at Shougang Park. Eight thematic exhibitions and several forums and meetings took place for the first time in Shougang Park.