Multinationals Summit opens in Qingdao
357 companies from 44 countries, 105 Fortune Global 500 giants, a record 20% from the service sector — the three‑day summit in Qingdao is the most representative ever. The theme: "Multinationals and China: Driving Innovation and the Future within the 15th Five‑Year Plan."
As reported by CCTV+, on Monday the seventh Multinationals Summit kicked off in Qingdao, Shandong Province, eastern China, bringing together 357 companies from 44 countries and regions. Among them are 105 Fortune Global 500 companies and 252 leading industry enterprises. Notably, companies from the modern service sector account for 20% of participants, a new historic high.
Under the theme "Multinationals and China: Driving Innovation and the Future within the 15th Five‑Year Plan," the summit includes an opening ceremony, a high‑quality development forum for multinationals, and a series of parallel sessions. The summit will also release a research report titled "Multinational Corporations in China," comprehensively detailing China's opening‑up policies, market opportunities and innovation prospects during the 15th Five‑Year Plan period (2026–2030). The goal is to facilitate deeper integration of multinationals into China's industrial, logistics and innovation chains, allowing them to benefit from China's vast market, innovation‑driven growth and institutional openness.
As China's first high‑level, institutionalized economic and trade event dedicated exclusively to multinational corporations, the summit has been held six consecutive times since its launch in 2019. Over those six years, it has consistently focused on the core theme "Multinationals and China," evolving with the times. The event has not only witnessed the deep integration of multinationals into the Chinese market but also demonstrated China's firm commitment to expanding high‑level openness and deepening cooperation with global enterprises.
The Qingdao Multinationals Summit, launched in 2019, is China's first and only high‑level institutional platform dedicated exclusively to international corporations. The 15th Five‑Year Plan (2026–2030) is a critical stage in China's march toward socialist modernization. A record 20% of participants from the service sector signals a shift in China's economy toward high‑tech services and innovation.
When 357 companies from 44 countries gather in one city, it is not just a business meeting. It is trust. Despite global turbulence, sanctions, trade disputes, global corporations are once again choosing Qingdao. One hundred and five Fortune 500 giants would not waste time on protocol events if they did not see the benefits. Twenty percent from services sends a signal: China is no longer just the "world's factory." It is becoming the "world's market for ideas, services and innovation." And while the 15th Five‑Year Plan is discussed in summit halls, a new chapter of the global economy is already being written outside — without loud slogans, but with concrete contracts.
