On October 13, 2023, the Sino-Swiss Competence Center (SSCC) of the University of International Business and Economics (UIBE), in cooperation with the University of St. Gallen and Shanghai Customs College, released the report "Sino-Swiss Free Trade Agreement - 2023 Academic Evaluation Report (10th Anniversary Edition)" at the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland.

Meeting before the launch event

Chinese Ambassador to Switzerland Wang Shiting, St. Gallen Canton President Stefan Koelliker, President of the University of St. Gallen Bernhard Ehrenzeller, Swiss Trade and Investment Agency representatives, joint research team of the Swiss and Chinese universities, representatives of Swiss enterprises in China, and more than 100 professors and students from the University of St. Gallen attended the event. Professor Tu Xinquan, Director of the Chinese side of SSCC and WTO Chairholder at UIBE, delivered a speech on Sino-Swiss economic and trade cooperation and China's firm opening up. Associate Professor Li Siqi and Associate Professor Du Yingxin, two of the principal contributors of the report, presented the findings of the report respectively.

SSCC team introducing the content of the report

This report is the second evaluation report of the Sino-Swiss FTA released by the SSCC in collaboration with the University of St. Gallen. The first report, Sino-Swiss Free Trade Agreement – 2018 Academic Evaluation Report, was launched in St. Gallen, Switzerland in September 2018 and is the first assessment of the Sino-Swiss FTA which came into force in 2014. The year 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of the signing of the Sino-Swiss Free Trade Agreement, and the import tariff of most products have been eliminated to zero. The research team of the report have dedicated significant research resources into establishing SSFTA utilization rates and analysing the reasons why the agreement is and is not utilized. The report also analyses areas beyond trade in goods, including trade in services, investment, and China's unilateral measures on trade and investment. The report points out that the Sino-Swiss FTA has played an important role in promoting trade between the two countries, and China's commitment of promoting high-level opening-up will further inject impetus into the Sino-Swiss FTA cooperation.

Link to the report: https://doi.org/10.33058/seismo.30885