The World Trade Organization (WTO) released its world Trade Report 2020 Tuesday, focusing on policies to promote innovation in the digital age. The report notes that an increasing number of governments have adopted policies that promote economic innovation and technological progress, a trend that has implications for trade and rules, and the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated e-commerce and digital innovation. Since the financial crisis, some 115 countries have introduced new industrial policies, such as "Industry 4.0" and "Digital transformation" programs, to encourage technology upgrading, digital production and digital innovation. Countries have different levels of development of the policy of supporting innovation and digital transformation, the concrete policy tools, mainly to encourage innovation and knowledge sharing, data policies and regulations, and support the development of telecom network infrastructure, as well as solve quickly in the digital transformation of "winner-take-all" and the problem of employment.

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The report also identifies opportunities and challenges facing developing countries, such as opportunities arising from the digitization of manufacturing and new digital supply chain services. The Internet offers companies in low-income countries huge opportunities to access international markets at low cost, but there is also a digital divide in infrastructure and technology levels. The report stresses that open trade enables innovation policies to achieve their stated goals more effectively, foreign competition drives local companies to innovate, and participation in global value chains enables faster access to foreign markets and cutting-edge technologies.


The report notes that the WTO's rules on the digital economy over the past 25 years are forward-looking and that the core rules provide openness, transparency and non-discrimination, consistent with the development of global networks. The demand for international rules for data transmission, data localization, consumer protection, and national security is on the rise. International cooperation can build consensus and help avoid trade tensions and retaliation, thus laying a stronger foundation for innovation, investment, and transnational business to flourish.

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