The Annual Report on China International Commercial Arbitration (2024-2025), which comprehensively summarizes and showcases the annual achievements of China's rule of law construction in international commercial arbitration (hereinafter referred to as the "Report"); The "Research on the Arbitration System of Latin American Countries" (hereinafter referred to as "Latin American Studies"), which focuses on the research results of arbitration systems in Latin American countries for the first time in China; The Selection of Construction Engineering Arbitration Cases (hereinafter referred to as "Construction Engineering Cases") focuses on the hot issues in construction engineering disputes with the highest number of cases accepted by arbitration institutions. On September 16th, the three major research results on arbitration were released together in Beijing. These three research results are all from the China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC). The first Chinese arbitration institution to conduct an annual summary of the development of international commercial arbitration (commonly known as Chinese foreign-related arbitration) in China, known as CIETAC, has achieved remarkable results. On September 22, 2015, CIETAC released the Annual Report on China International Commercial Arbitration (2014). Up to now, the annual report on China International Commercial Arbitration has been published in both Chinese and English for ten consecutive years. Especially since 2019, the release of the "Report" has become a regular program of China Arbitration Week every year, receiving increasing attention from both domestic and international arbitration theory and practice circles. The confidence and perseverance in this exploration stem from the strength of CIETAC itself. According to the 2025 survey report by an authoritative international arbitration evaluation agency, following the recognition of CIETAC as one of the world's top five most popular arbitration institutions in 2021, the CIETAC 2024 Arbitration Rules are ranked alongside the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law Arbitration Rules as one of the top five most popular arbitration rules in the world. Beijing, Shenzhen, and Shanghai, where CIETAC and its branches are located, also rank among the top ten most popular arbitration destinations in the world. Wang Chengjie, Deputy Director and Secretary General of CIETAC, said that arbitration, as an internationally recognized method for resolving economic and trade investment disputes, has become an important means for countries to optimize their business environment and enhance their legal soft power. In the current era where countries around the world are increasingly valuing the development of arbitration and international competition is becoming more intense, Chinese arbitration institutions represented by CIETAC have achieved remarkable results in internationalization and specialization. The international credibility and global influence of Chinese arbitration continue to rise, and the construction of China's world-class arbitration institutions has taken solid steps. The construction of the International Commercial Arbitration Center has shown strong momentum. The Civil Code has been integrated into arbitration practice, which is different from previous years. A detailed review and presentation of the application of the Civil Code in arbitration is a major highlight of this year's report. The Civil Code is about to celebrate its 5th anniversary of implementation. According to Wang Chengjie, the "Report" has analyzed and condensed the characteristics of the Civil Code in the application of arbitration, such as strong flexibility, high degree of specialization, diverse interpretation basis, and efficient dispute resolution. This not only helps to unify the scale of arbitration judgments, but also provides guidance for creatively interpreting and applying the Civil Code in arbitration, responding to the dispute resolution needs of cutting-edge fields such as digital economy, green low-carbon, and artificial intelligence. Professor Yao Hui, Director of the Research Center for Civil and Commercial Law at Renmin University of China and Arbitrator of CIETAC, told reporters from the Rule of Law Daily that since the implementation of the Civil Code, it has become the basic legal basis for adjudicating civil and commercial legal disputes, including CIETAC, and has fully played its fundamental, stable, and long-term role in ensuring the rule of law. From the specific trial situation, the basic principles of equality, freedom, fairness, good faith, public order and good customs established by the Civil Code, as well as the legal rules of various civil departments established by the different parts of the Civil Code, provide clear legal basis for the handling of difficult issues in related disputes. The Civil Code has been fully and deeply integrated into arbitration practice, becoming the basic guideline and powerful guarantee for arbitration activities. The Civil Code has effectively promoted the resolution of arbitration disputes, "said Yao Hui. The construction industry is a pillar industry of the national economy, and arbitration is increasingly chosen to resolve construction disputes due to its professional, efficient, and flexible procedures. The report comprehensively analyzes the hot and difficult issues in construction project dispute arbitration. Proceeding from the development status of China's construction industry and the causes of disputes, combined with typical cases of trade arbitration, this paper made a comprehensive analysis on the identification of foreign laws in foreign-related project disputes, the launch of project price dispute identification procedures, the application of expert mechanism in construction period claims, "back-to-back clauses" and the arbitrability of PPP disputes, and other issues, clarified some key issues of disputes over the years, providing a reference for Chinese enterprises to participate in the legal risk prevention and dispute resolution of the "the Belt and Road" project construction. The "Construction Case" released this time, as an extension of the relevant content of the "Report", selects 15 representative real cases of CIETAC and has arbitrators write analysis and commentary opinions. Separate typical cases of construction engineering into a book, related to the development and pivotal position of the construction industry. The "Statistical Analysis of Construction Industry Development in 2024" released earlier this year by the China Construction Industry Association shows that in 2024, China's foreign contracted engineering business completed a turnover of 165.97 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 3.14%; The newly signed contract amount is 267.3 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 1.05%. The turnover of foreign contracted projects has maintained growth for two consecutive years, and the amount of newly signed contracts has continued to increase for three consecutive years. Tan Jinghui, founding partner of Beijing Jundu Law Firm and arbitrator of CIETAC, said that the number of construction projects accepted by mainstream arbitration institutions in China, represented by CIETAC, reached a new high in 2024. With the gradual rise of the power of the "Global South" countries and the continuous expansion of China Latin America economic and trade exchanges under the "the Belt and Road" framework, CIETAC organized forces to study and compile the "Latin American Studies" on the basis of the previous research on the "the Belt and Road" joint construction of national arbitration system, aiming to further promote the improvement of China's arbitration system, industry development and information exchange, and enhance China's credibility and influence in the international commercial arbitration arena. Data shows that the trade volume between China and Latin America reached 518.4 billion US dollars in 2024, and China has maintained its position as the second largest trading partner in Latin America for several consecutive years. It can be foreseen that arbitration cooperation between China and Latin American countries will also enter a new and closer stage, "said Wang Chengjie. From 2014 to 2024, CIETAC accepted a total of 107 arbitration cases involving Latin America, with a total dispute amount of 2.7 billion yuan. The average dispute amount of each case reached 25.56 million yuan, of which 7 cases had dispute amounts exceeding 100 million yuan; The parties involved in the case cover 20 major Latin American countries, including Mexico, Brazil, Chile, and Peru. Latin American Studies provides a concise summary of the development of Latin American arbitration, analyzes in depth the institutional characteristics of Latin American arbitration, and explores strategies for responding to Latin American arbitration. Song Lianbin, a professor at the School of International Law of China University of Political Science and Law and an arbitrator of CIETAC, added that Chinese enterprises should pay attention to the following points when participating in arbitration in Latin American countries: firstly, when conducting background checks in target countries, they should pay attention to their diverse legal traditions; Secondly, when selecting an arbitrator, it is necessary to consider the influence of their professional background and political factors; Thirdly, we should make good use of the mediation mechanism in arbitration and break through the barriers of conservative arbitration frameworks; Fourthly, attention should be paid to preserving written evidence and addressing the challenges of desensitization requirements. Wang Chengjie stated that CIETAC will continue to carry out high-quality research projects such as annual reports, national arbitration system studies, and case selection, deeply implement the new development concept, actively integrate into and serve the new development pattern, coordinate the promotion of domestic and foreign-related rule of law, and help expand high-level opening-up to the outside world. (New Society)