Sixth China-ASEAN Expo

The sixth CAEXPO, to be held from October 20-24, 2009, in Nanning, China, will be another grand trade fair for China-ASEAN exchanges and cooperation right before the establishment of the CAFTA in 2010.

The sixth CAEXPO and the sixth CABIS press conference takes place in Beijing

The sixth CAEXPO and sixth China-ASEAN Business & Investment Summit (CABIS) Press Conference was recently held in Beijing. Hosted by Lu Guangjin, deputy director general of the Information Bureau of the State Council Information Office of China, the conference attracted the leaders of competent departments – including Gao Hucheng, vice-minister of commerce of China and vice-co-chair of the CAEXPO organizing committee; Chen Wu, vice-governor of Guangxi and vice-co-chair and secretary general of the CAEXPO organizing committee; Dong Songgen, vice-chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT); and Li Kenong, vice-minister of the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC) briefed the media from home and abroad on the preparations for these two events.

The CAEXPO: A driver for CAFTA construction and China-ASEAN cooperation

Vice-Minister Gao Hucheng said that the CAEXPO has played an irreplaceable role in promoting CAFTA construction as well as China-ASEAN economic and trade cooperation, as well as in expanding bilateral cooperation and exchanges in an all-around way. The CAEXPO has invested great effort to accelerate the CAFTA construction, vigorously promoting bilateral trade in goods, trade in services and investment cooperation. It has established its own database and business-matching system to help enterprises explore overseas markets. All these efforts have translated the CAFTA investment and trade facilitations from government paperwork into tangible benefits of enterprises in the China-ASEAN region, and thus greatly sped up the CAFTA construction.

The previous five CAEXPOs attracted almost 120,000 exhibitors and trade visitors and over 100 chambers of commerce/trade associations. From the first CAEXPO in 2004 to the fifth session in 2008, China-ASEAN bilateral trade recorded an average annual growth rate of 21.6 percent. By the end of 2008, the two-way investment approached $60 billion. It is beyond a doubt that the CAEXPO has become a driver for CAFTA construction and China-ASEAN economic and trade cooperation.

The sixth CAEXPO with four highlights

Vice-Governor Chen Wu of Guangxi gave a briefing on the preparations for the upcoming sixth CAEXPO, particularly the four highlights as follows:

First, the sixth CAEXPO has attracted high-profile participants as usual. Heads of state/governments and ministerial-level officials of China and ASEAN countries will attend. Second, there will be more professional exhibitions.

The sixth CAEXPO will extend its fair period from four days to five days, set up more booths, and open up a sub-venue to accommodate professional agricultural exhibition for the first time. A newly-added financial service exhibition will be arranged; more quality trade visitors will join in the event; and more diversified business promotion programs will be held. Third, over 10 forums and conferences on customs, finance and agriculture will be held concurrently. Fourth, more business-friendly services will be provided.

The sixth CABIS: Brainstorming of great minds

According to Dong Songgen, vice-chairman of the CCPIT, the sixth CABIS, with the theme of “CAFTA and ASEAN Integration: Cooperation for Mutual Development,” will spotlight two topics: “Address Crisis, Achieve Common Development” and “Market Opening & New Business Opportunity.” A roundtable meeting of leaders and CEOs, and a group interview for business leaders, will be held for the first time.

Li Kenong, vice-minister of the GACC, said that the China-ASEAN Customs-Business Cooperation Forum, based on the theme of “Promoting Trade Facilitations,” will have in-depth discussions on such topics as trade facilitation measures of customs authorities in China and the ASEAN, acceleration of CAFTA construction, and the standard and streamlined procedures on supervisions and customs clearance.

Active response from the press

The leaders mentioned above also answered questions raised by journalists from home and abroad.

This conference aroused keen interest in the press, with 71 journalists from 44 media outlets drawn to the event for full-range coverage.

As the world is facing a financial crisis and the CAFTA is to be established, preparatory work for the sixth CAEXPO and sixth CABIS has thus attracted wide attention from political and business circles as well as media in China and the ASEAN.

Edited by Michael Thai