The 2026 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) was held in Beijing’s Shougang Park last week. The event, themed “Embrace Intelligent Technologies, Empower Trade in Services”, featured exhibitions, roadshows, product launches and business matchmaking sessions. This year’s CIFTIS spotlights the latest advancements in sectors such as information and communications, financial technology, digital healthcare, smart education and environmental protection.
More than 190 forums, matchmaking sessions and promotional activities were held, including the Forum on Development of Trade in Services, the Forum on Development Trends of Digital Trade, and the World Conference on Tourism Cooperation and Development. International participation at this year’s CIFTIS is higher than last year. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) co-hosted the Global Trade in Services Summit with China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) and the Beijing government. More than 1,800 companies, including 473 Fortune Global 500 companies and industry leaders, showcased their innovations.
Norway, the guest country of honor, presented advances in marine industries, nutrition, agriculture, energy, health, digital services, tourism, culture, home design and more. China’s Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, the guest province of honor, highlighted its achievements in artificial intelligence (AI), cross-border logistics, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and cultural exports.
CIFTIS 2026 focussed on four topics: open integration, win-win cooperation, digital innovation and green development. More than 200 new products and achievements were unveiled, with over 100 making their global or China debut. According to the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), China’s imports and exports of services reached CNY3.78 trillion in the first half of 2026, marking an 8.3% year-on-year increase. Service exports grew by 17.6%, becoming a crucial driver of foreign trade growth.
In the ICT-themed exhibition hall artificial intelligence (AI) models catch the eye. A trillion-parameter open-source AI large model – the first of its kind fully trained and run on a domestic 10,000-GPU cards computing cluster – made its public debut, next to a “logistics super brain” AI model paired with robots for global supply-chain solutions. China's three major telecom operators showcased their "token going global" capabilities, exporting AI computing power and intelligent applications, moving from “laying cables” to “exporting tokens.” Their AI agents – China Telecom's TeleAgent, China Mobile's MobileClaw and China Unicom's UniClaw – made their debuts, alongside 10 service packages covering multimodal token services, computing-power empowerment for manufacturing, AI quality inspection, and secure cross-border data circulation. According to a recent PwC study report released in June, China ranks among the global leaders in applying AI effectively across the real economy. Liu Yaxiao, PwC China's head of its new AI Innovation Center in Shanghai, noted that more overseas clients are now adopting China's open-source AI ecosystem.
For the first time, the main exhibition featured a dedicated “China Services” zone, bringing together over 140 innovative cases across all 12 services trade categories. Nearly 40% centered on AI, large models and intelligent agents. Beyond telecoms, the zone featured BeiDou satellite navigation services, quantum computing cloud platforms, and even reusable rocket launch services. The very establishment of this zone signals that Chinese companies are also increasingly exporting algorithms, digital intelligence and productivity solutions that are already reshaping industries worldwide.
Knowledge-intensive services have been increasingly driving China's service exports. In the first half of 2026, the country's total services imports and exports reached CNY3.8 trillion, up 8.3% year-on-year, according to the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM). Notably, service exports grew by 17.6%, becoming a key driver of foreign trade growth.
Daren Tang, Director General of the Geneva-based World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), said China has posted rapid growth in trade in services, with strong exports of knowledge-intensive services supported by the country’s IP and innovation ecosystem. From a business perspective, Wu Xuchu, Vice Chairman of KPMG China, said China has become one of the world’s most important growth markets for businesses worldwide, and a key testing ground for innovation. The country has developed comprehensive industrial capabilities in areas such as artificial intelligence, digital payments, optical communications, computing infrastructure and electrical equipment, Wu said.
This overview is based on reports by the China Daily, Global Times and South China Morning Post.
