China-GCC forum to open on Sunday

The China-GCC Economic and Trade Cooperation Forum, jointly hosted by the Ministry of Commerce and the provincial government of Guangdong, will be held in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province, on Sunday.

The event will set up a platform seeking cooperation opportunities based on the achievements and consensus of the first China-GCC Summit, which was held in Riyadh, capital of Saudi Arabia, in December 2022.

About 400 representatives including senior officials from China, GCC member countries and the Secretariat of the GCC, and senior executives from enterprises, business associations and financial institutions of both sides, as well as think tanks and scholars, are to attend. Subforums on green development and the digital economy as well as industrial investment and financial cooperation will be organized, where related policies will be briefed and major platforms and industrial parks promoted.

As a major manufacturing base, Guangdong has well-developed industrial and supply chains with eight industrial clusters — new-generation electronics and information technology; green petrochemicals; intelligent home appliances; advanced materials; the modern light industry and textiles; software and information services; modern agriculture and automobiles — capable of an annual output surpassing 1 trillion yuan ($136 billion) each.

A total of 19 companies including Huawei, Tencent, GAC, BYD and Midea have entered the list of the Fortune Global 500. More than 30 percent of mobile phones and smart home appliances, 50 percent of 5G devices, 70 percent of commercial drones and 12 percent of new energy vehicles globally are manufactured in Guangdong.