On February 3, 2026, Professor Jiang Wei, Distinguished Research Fellow at the 21st Century Institute for Global Enterprise, Antai College of Economics and Management (ACEM), Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), as well as Chief Scientist and Assistant Dean of SJTU Shenzhen Research Institute, led a research team to visit the Shenzhen Cross-Border E-Commerce Association (SZCBEA) for exchanges and cooperation.

Mr. Xie Zhuoheng, Executive President of SZCBEA, extended a warm welcome to Professor Jiang and the delegation on behalf of the association. The two sides held in-depth discussions on the development trends of the cross-border e-commerce industry and research-enabled industrial empowerment.

Prior to the meeting, the two sides shared the latest research achievements of their respective teams. Professor Jiang presented SZCBEA with his team’s new book Crossing the Divide: Telling China’s Story of Global Supply Chain Evolution. In return, Mr. Xie presented the 2025 China Cross-Border E-Commerce Industry Blue Book.

During the meeting, Professor Jiang introduced ACEM’s research layout and achievements in cross-border e-commerce. He shared insights on current international geopolitical risks and the future paths for Chinese enterprises going global. He noted that the current international trade landscape is exhibiting a tripolar structure centered on the United States, Europe and China. In their global expansion, Chinese enterprises must closely track the evolution of the three major supply chain ecosystems to better meet rising demands for supply chain security, compliance and resilience.

In the exchange, Mr. Xie Zhuoheng introduced the development history and latest work progress of SZCBEA. He stated that SZCBEA, founded on May 20, 2014, has been deeply engaged in the cross-border e-commerce field for more than a decade. As a local, industry-specific and non-profit Level-5A social organization (the highest rating for social organizations in China), it enjoys high influence in China’s cross-border e-commerce industry. Currently, SZCBEA is continuously strengthening the construction of its research institute, actively promoting the formulation of cross-border e-commerce industry standards, and focusing on the construction of a global cross-border e-commerce ecosystem service platform.

In the subsequent session, Mr. Chen Hongjun—a member of the Multinational Supply Chain Research Team of The 21st Century Institute for Global Enterprise, an alumnus of Antai EMBA Class of 2015, and General Manager of Shanghai Lianwei Technology—detailed the series of research achievements of Professor Jiang’s team in the automotive industry and the field of multinational enterprise supply chains since 2017, and focused on demonstrating the core functions of the independently developed multinational supply chain large-model platform. During the on-site demonstration, the large model responded accurately to the relevant questions raised by the participating guests. Mr. Chen stated that he looks forward to further enhancing the overseas layout capabilities and practical operation levels of Chinese cross-border e-commerce sellers through in-depth cooperation between the two sides, and providing intelligent decision-making tools for Chinese sellers to achieve high-quality overseas expansion.

The two sides conducted in-depth discussions on future cooperation directions and reached preliminary consensus in multiple areas, including cooperation in domestic and foreign exhibitions, joint conduct of academic research, co-compilation of cross-border e-commerce-related textbooks, promotion of joint education programs between SZCBEA and ACEM, SJTU, and exploration of in-depth integration between the global cross-border e-commerce ecosystem service platform and large-model technologies. Both sides agreed that a special working group will be established subsequently, with respective teams responsible for specific connection and promotion of the implementation of relevant cooperation matters.

After the meeting, Mr. Xie accompanied the delegation to visit the exhibition hall and the expert wall. Combining practical cases, he systematically elaborated on how SZCBEA guides cross-border e-commerce sellers to integrate Chinese characteristics into product development by in-depth research on overseas markets and customer needs, so as to achieve sustainable business growth. At the same time, he emphasized that cross-border legal means should be fully utilized to effectively safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese cross-border e-commerce sellers.

This visit has deepened the exchanges and mutual learning between The 21st Century Institute for Global Enterprise and leading domestic industry associations. It is expected that through Industry-Academia-Research Collaboration, it will provide theoretical basis, practical cases, association empowerment and AI application support for the overseas expansion of Chinese small and medium-sized enterprises.

Background: As an important part of Chinese enterprises’ overseas expansion, cross-border e-commerce has become a core force supporting the steady growth of China’s foreign trade.  As the industry gradually transitions from the "explosive growth" stage to a new stage of "high-quality globalization", profound changes are taking place in its industrial structure, supply chain system and compliance environment.