The rapid changes in global trade patterns and the accelerated development of global production fragmentation and regionalization have prompted policymakers and researchers to seek new economic and statistical frameworks for trade policy analysis. Traditional trade models based on final goods are no longer applicable to the current global economic landscape, which is dominated by production fragmentation and intermediate goods trade. The repeated cross-border flow of intermediate inputs within global value chains (GVCs) leads to double counting in official total trade statistics, forcing policymakers and researchers to adjust their understanding and methods of trade analysis.

However, existing global value chain research institutions mainly focus on two areas: supply chain and logistics management, and global value chain governance and economic development. These institutions typically base their research on management sciences, providing enterprises with the tools to organize production more efficiently and reduce operational risks in the face of intense global competition. They are often set up in management science schools, business schools, or industrial engineering faculties in universities. Alternatively, research may focus on the value-added activities of leading companies in the value chain, the power asymmetry between leading firms and other suppliers, and the role of government policies and other social institutions in GVC development, which is typically done by various social science departments or international research networks. Currently, there is no specialized institution focusing on the quantitative research of global value chains from an economic and statistical perspective.

Since the concept of global value chains was proposed, it has quickly demonstrated strong theoretical and practical value. In recent years, breakthroughs in economic theory and statistical methods have allowed global value chain research to expand rapidly from traditional qualitative analysis based on micro case studies to a more quantitative and macroeconomic level, relying on economics and statistics. This shift has brought attention to urgent issues that need to be addressed, which traditional supply chain management and GVC governance research cannot fully resolve, such as the relationship between a country's position and participation in the GVC and employment, productivity, economic growth, and trade policies.

With the deepening global division of labor and the rapid transformation of global trade patterns, international organizations and governments have recognized the limitations of traditional trade statistics and the significant role of GVC research in multilateral trade and investment negotiations, improving global governance, and promoting global economic integration. Consequently, they are cooperating closely in compiling global value-added trade statistics. However, value chain analysis using advanced statistical methods and economic theory is technically complex, and most work relies on the collaboration of experienced professional researchers. Thus, despite the urgent demand for GVC research, there is a significant lack of organized, team-based research efforts.

Since China’s opening-up, with increasing participation in global value chains, China has become a crucial part of many industries' global value chains. After the 2008 global financial crisis, the global production organization underwent a significant shift, with developed countries such as the United States and Germany introducing "reindustrialization" policies to revive their manufacturing sectors and attract high-end manufacturing back, intensifying competition in the manufacturing segment of value chains and posing new challenges for China's manufacturing industry. China's economic strategy during the 13th Five-Year Plan period aimed for a fundamental shift from an investment-driven growth model based on cheap labor to one driven by endogenous technological progress and human capital accumulation. Internationally, China sought to build competitive advantages through institutional and technological innovations, transform its manufacturing sector to higher-end segments of the value chain, and promote the transition from a "factory economy" to a "headquarters economy." Therefore, the Chinese government has placed a high emphasis on global value chain research. Establishing an international academic research platform for value chains in China allows academic research to be conducted from a Chinese perspective and quickly elevates China's research on global value chains to the international forefront. The study of global value chains is also vital for evaluating the comprehensive benefits and welfare effects of strategies such as the "Belt and Road Initiative" and "Made in China 2025."

Against this backdrop, the Research Institute for Global Value Chain was established at the University of International Business and Economics (UIBE) in May 2015, under the cooperation framework between the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China and UIBE.