Participants consult on overseas expansion services at an e-commerce platform zone during the Yellow River Basin Cross-border E-commerce Expo 2026 in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng) 

The 2026 China International Fair for Trade in Services, or CIFTIS, scheduled for Sept. 9-13 at Beijing's Shougang Park, will feature a "Going Global Service Enterprise Exhibition Area" for the first time, bringing together more than 30 enterprises offering services in fields including finance, legal affairs, accounting, advertising and human resources to provide one-stop solutions for businesses expanding overseas.

The total value of China's service imports and exports reached nearly 3.78 trillion yuan (about $562.47 billion) in the first half of 2026, up 8.3 percent year on year, according to the Ministry of Commerce. Knowledge-intensive service exports rose 12.8 percent to 805.67 billion yuan, accounting for 53.5 percent of total service exports — a shift reflecting Chinese companies moving from simply exporting products to providing the services that support their overseas expansion.

China's outbound direct investment across all industries reached 596.42 billion yuan in the first half of the year, up 3.8 percent year on year, with 120.77 billion yuan in non-financial direct investment by Chinese companies in Belt and Road partner countries. By the end of 2025, China had established more than 50,000 overseas enterprises across 190 countries and regions.

Hoffman Cheong, EY China North Managing Partner, said the shift from selling products abroad to supporting them with services reflects three changes: outbound expansion has entered a stage where entire business ecosystems, not just products, must relocate; growing geopolitical risks, regulatory complexity and cultural differences demand full-chain support; and services themselves are becoming a new calling card for Chinese exports alongside manufacturing.

Xu Guangjian, a professor at the School of Public Administration and Policy under Renmin University of China, said the complexity of overseas policies and regulations, cultural differences and market rules make professional support — especially in financial compliance, intellectual property protection, tax planning and labor management — essential for firms expanding abroad.

An official with the Beijing Municipal Commerce Bureau said more than 60 companies have confirmed participation in this year's CIFTIS, over half of them first-time exhibitors, spanning eight areas including human resources, cross-border accounting, legal services, digital marketing, supply chain services, intellectual property, market research and international certification.

The debut of the Going Global Service Zone is the biggest highlight of this year's CIFTIS, according to a representative of Beijing Capital Group Exhibitions & Events.

This year's fair will also host a series of "Going Global Service Promotion Roadshow" activities for the first time, with nearly 40 sessions already scheduled.

At this year's fair, EY will present a series of innovative products and research reports covering key areas such as digital and intelligent empowerment, green transformation, cross-border compliance and global operations.

The company offers Chinese companies one-stop, full-chain solutions — from strategic planning and investment transactions to tax, finance and human resources, supply chain management and IT infrastructure — covering the entire process of global expansion, Cheong said.

Since its overseas investment division was established in 2009, EY China's service network has expanded to cover more than 90 countries and regions worldwide, Cheong noted. Over the past three years, it has served more than 3,800 Chinese companies with their overseas operations, completing over 100,000 projects in total.

Once companies are operating abroad, marketing and logistics support become central. BlueFocus, a marketing technology firm, reported 2025 revenue of 68.69 billion yuan, including 56.5 billion yuan from businesses expanding overseas, up 16.89 percent year on year, according to Kong Jing, vice president of the company. At this year's CIFTIS, it plans to showcase a "Globalization 2.0" platform, which helps companies achieve round-the-clock project management across time zones and one-stop localization services.

Longer-term challenges — antitrust reviews, intellectual property disputes and dispute resolution — also loom as companies mature overseas. Monica Su, International Trademark Association (INTA) chief representative officer for China, said small and mid-sized Chinese exporters often have competitive products but lag behind in brand protection, leaving them vulnerable to trademark squatting and counterfeiting abroad.

To that end, INTA is leveraging its global professional network to build a full-chain, low-cost and highly practical support system to help small and mid-sized Chinese enterprises expand abroad, Su said. During the fair, INTA will unveil two major achievements: Phase III of its "Know Before You Go" guide series to support Chinese companies going global, and a series of expert dialogues on brand compliance in overseas markets.

Chinese regulators have also stepped up support. The State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) recently held its sixth overseas antitrust compliance training session of the year in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province.

Since launching its series of overseas antitrust compliance training sessions in 2025, the SAMR has held 12 sessions covering sectors including automobiles, aviation, integrated circuits, the internet, high-end manufacturing and biomedicine, as well as a wide range of business entities, with positive feedback from participants.

The SAMR will continue to align its compliance guidance with international regulatory trends and the needs of companies expanding overseas, helping Chinese firms achieve steady, high-quality and compliant growth in international markets.