CIIE becomes a global platform for intl economic and trade cooperation

The China International Import Expo (CIIE) is continuously contributing to facilitating international economic and trade cooperation, sharing massive opportunities in the Chinese market with the whole world, said officials and consuls-general Thursday in Shanghai.

The eighth CIIE, which is set to be held in the city from Nov 5 to 10, has seen its signed business exhibition area exceed 280,000 square meters so far. This year's CIIE will highlight emerging sectors such as artificial intelligence, silver economy, ice and snow economy, future mobility and low-altitude economy, according to Wu Zhengping, Party secretary and deputy director-general of the CIIE Bureau.

Launched in 2018, the expo has attracted over 23,000 exhibitors from more than 180 countries and regions, 2.9 million professional buyers and a total of 5 million visitors over the past seven editions, with the worth of intended deals totaling more than $500 billion, said Wu.

"We can see the tremendous increase of Chinese contribution to the world's imports and that shows the confidence and willingness of China to share its development opportunity with the rest of the world," he added.

Hosted by the Foreign Affairs Office of the Shanghai Municipal Government, the Shanghai Hongqiao International Central Business District (CBD) Administrative Commission and the CIIE Bureau, dozens of consuls-general in Shanghai joined a tour to learn more about the expo and the district on Thursday.

Ma Yinghui, director of Shanghai's Foreign Affairs Office, pointed out that the Shanghai Hongqiao CBD and the CIIE are critical windows for China's opening up. She expected to enhance communication with global consulates in the city and boost more cooperation with the world.

Kong Fu'an, executive vice-director of the Shanghai Hongqiao CBD Administrative Commission, noted that the district boasts diverse advantages and is thriving as a hub connecting the world with China, as the city strives to become an international center for economy, finance, trade, shipping, and sci-tech innovation.

Vladislav Alexandrov Spasov, consul-general of Bulgaria in Shanghai, was in the visiting group. Bulgaria has been participating in the CIIE since 2018, introducing their cosmetics, wine, food and cultural and tourists offerings to Chinese consumers.

"CIIE is a great platform for exhibiting high-quality products and establishing global connections. It offers opportunities to Bulgarian companies to present their products to Chinese customers while maintaining contacts with their distributors and discussing future ventures. I'm looking forward to the eighth CIIE, expecting Bulgarian and Chinese companies to have more contacts on collaboration and deepen economic ties," he said.

Vietnam is another active participant at the CIIE. It was the guest country of honor at the first and sixth CIIE and over 70 exhibitors from the nation attended the expo over the past seven editions.

Nguyen The Tung, Vietnamese consul-general in Shanghai, told China Daily that the CIIE has been strengthening economic and trade cooperation between the two nations. It is a pivotal event to enhance regional exchanges and collaboration between China and Southeastern Asian regions.