China climbs global openness rankings despite worldwide decline: Report

China's openness has continued to improve even as the global economy becomes less open, according to the World Openness Report released Nov. 5 at a sub-forum of the ninth Hongqiao International Economic Forum in Shanghai.

China's openness index rose from 0.5891 in 1990 to 0.7551 in 2025, an increase of 28.18%. In 2025, China ranked 37th of 129 economies, up one place from 2024 and 50 places from 1990. Its openness performance index has climbed 40.24% since 1990.

The opening ceremony of the ninth edition of the China International Import Expo (CIIE) and the ninth Hongqiao International Economic Forum is held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai), Nov. 5, 2026. [Photo by Dong Ning/China.org.cn]

Meanwhile, the world's economies became markedly less open in 2025. The latest World Openness Index included in the report stood at 0.7453 in 2025, down 1% year on year and 1.56% below the 2019 level. The annual decline was the steepest since 2016. The openness policy index fell 1.09%, while the openness performance index fell 0.9%.

As the forum's flagship report, the World Openness Report draws on scholars from China and abroad for framework design, indicator validation and academic exchanges. It also commissions special chapters from Nobel laureates and former editors-in-chief of United Nations reports, offering authoritative perspectives on global cooperation on openness.

For the first time, the report includes a global public opinion survey, drawing on more than 7,500 questionnaires from 40 economies to gauge how ordinary people experience openness in daily life.

Guests at the sub-forum from government, academia and business in China and abroad praised the report's academic value and practical relevance. They said that at a time of surging unilateralism and protectionism, with geopolitical rivalry intertwined with trade barriers, the report lets the data speak and grounds its analysis in facts. It provides an authoritative reference for assessing where global openness is heading, they said, expressing hope that it will continue to play an active role in building an open world economy.

The report consists of three parts: global openness trends, hot topics in world openness and successful practices of openness. It aims to help build an open world economy and make shared openness more resilient and inclusive.

The report also includes special chapters such as "China Opportunities 2.0," which argues that what China shares with the world now extends beyond its vast market to the new space created by industrial upgrading, innovative applications and green development. 

The report details the market, innovation and industrial benefits that China's opening up and development bring to the world, and highlights China's commitment to common development and shared opportunities.

Coinciding with the forum at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai), the ninth edition of the China International Import Expo (CIIE) demonstrates China's contribution to a more open global economy through mutual trust and connectivity.

Bernd Rützler, executive vice president of German cleaning technology manufacturer Kärcher, speaks during an interview at the ninth edition of the China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai, Nov. 6, 2026. [Photo by Wang Yanfang/China.org.cn]

Bernd Rützler, executive vice president of German cleaning technology manufacturer Kärcher, a participant in every edition of the CIIE since its launch, said at the expo that the company first came as an exhibitor seeking to learn more about the Chinese market and has since become an investor with its own manufacturing and R&D centers, achieving double-digit growth.

Yang Gang, vice chairman of CP Group China, speaks at the ninth Hongqiao International Economic Forum in Shanghai, Nov. 5, 2026. [Photo provided to China.org.cn]

Thai conglomerate Charoen Pokphand (CP) Group, which has also attended all nine editions of the expo, entered the Chinese market in 1979, shortly after reform and opening up began. Yang Gang, vice chairman of CP Group China, said the company has been a participant in, contributor to and beneficiary of reform and opening up. In its 47 years in China, the company has set up more than 600 enterprises, and its annual revenue in the country has exceeded 200 billion yuan ($30 billion).