On 5–6 November 2019 Shanghai (China) welcomed the Second Hongqiao International Economic Forum, which was held on the side-lines of the Second China International Import Expo in the National Convention and Exhibition Center.

The Forum was hosted by the State Council Information Office of the People’s Republic of China. It was organised by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and supported by the Xinhua Institute, the National Institute for Global Strategy and the Information Office of Shanghai Municipality.

Four dozens of the leading global companies served as the event’s commercial partners.

The fact that key Forum participants were welcomed by Xi Jinping, the President of the People’s Republic of China, confirms the exceptionally high level of the event. In addition, a number of world leaders and international organisations, including the French President Emmanuel Macron, Prime Ministers of Greece (Kyriakos Mitsotakis), Serbia (Ana Brnabić) and Jamaica (Andrew Holness), the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Italy (Luigi Di Maio) and Director General of the World Trade Organization (Roberto Azevedo), gave speeches at the opening ceremony and during the Forum.

270 Forum participants from 90 countries included renowned politicians and statesmen, members of the world’s leading research centres and international organisations that deal with issues of global regulation, as well as mass media.

Key discussion topics included 1) multi-path exploration of modernization; 2) China and the historical process of economic globalization; 3) economic growth and inclusive development; 4) openness, cooperation and civilization dialogue; 5) consultation, contribution, shared benefits and global governance; 6) comparison of poverty alleviation and reduction between Chana and abroad; 7) ecological civilization and sustainable development.

The Razumkov Centre’s Volodymyr Sidenko, Senior Research Fellow, presented a speech “In Search for an Alternative to the Failed Global Neoliberal Order” at the Section 2 of the Forum “China and the Historical Process of Economic Globalization”.

Overall, close to 170 speakers spoke at the Forum on various issues. The discussions have helped to identify the key issues that need to be addressed in the context of the current state and trends of the global economy. The importance of a global economic order based on the principles of shared responsibility for the future, broad equal cooperation, the right of nations to freely determine their path of development, and the rejection of unilateral protectionist actions was the keynote of the Forum.