Zhang Guoqing Opens APEC SME Ministerial in Guangzhou

Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing opened the 32nd Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Small and Medium Enterprises Ministerial Meeting in Guangzhou on Friday, using the platform to call for joint efforts to help smaller companies thrive.

Zhang, who is also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said China is strengthening policy support for SMEs and deepening practical cooperation with APEC economies to promote high-quality development of smaller businesses.

He told delegates that China is ready to work with all parties to implement the four major global initiatives, foster a fair and just market environment, and build an inclusive and shared service system. He framed these steps as part of building an open, dynamic, resilient and peaceful Asia-Pacific community.

Zhang was in Guangdong for a related event: the opening ceremony of the 21st China International Small and Medium Enterprises Fair. There, he encouraged SMEs to stay focused on their core businesses, develop key technological capabilities, build quality brands, and use their comparative advantages to pursue specialised and sophisticated growth.

Why Beijing Is Putting SMEs at the Center of APEC Diplomacy

China's role on the APEC SME stage

The speech is high-level policy language rather than a package of new measures. But it places China at the centre of the APEC SME agenda and signals that Beijing wants to be seen as the convening economy for smaller-business cooperation in the region.

The 'little giants' subtext

The advice to SMEs — focus on core business, build technological capabilities and quality brands — echoes China's industrial policy push for 'little giant' companies that specialise in niche technologies. That framing is aimed as much at domestic firms as at APEC partners.

Guangdong as a business backdrop

The pairing of the APEC ministerial with the China International SME Fair gives visiting officials exposure to Chinese SMEs and provinces seeking trade and investment links. The reference to a fair and just market environment is diplomatic language that nods to APEC members' concerns about market access and state support.

No specific funding, regulatory or market-access commitments were announced, so the immediate operating environment for SMEs is unchanged. The value lies in the forum and the political signal.