China International Import Expo, the first specialized national-level expo themed around import, will be held from March 29 to 31, 2012 in Kunshan City in eastern China’s Jiangsu Province, according to the news conference on July 15.
Hosted by China Chamber of International Commerce (CCOIC) and Jiangsu provincial government, and organized by local governments, the expo aims to provide an import trade platform, where import can play its role in the balance of China’s macro economy and economic restructuring.
“The expo will target the importers like members of the free trade zones, the countries which has a big unfavorable balance of trade with China, and the least developed countries, in order to help ease the growing trade surplus between China and the major countries and districts,” said Zhang Wei, Vice President of CCOIC.
The expo will focus on expanding import advanced technology and equipment, key components, domestic shortages, new energy, energy saving and environmentally friendly products, to meet the import demands of emerging industries of strategic importance, such as the new generation of information technology, high-end equipment manufacturing, biotechnology, new material, new energy vehicle, etc. The expo, covering some 50,000 square meters, is expected to attract over 200,000 visitors.
Mainly showcasing the products and technologies in the key fields, the expo will cover four professional sections, namely section of technology and equipment, section of information technology, section of environmentally friendly technology equipment, new materials and other high-tech products, section of brand consumer goods.
During the expo, there will also be an international summit forum, seminars and lectures, and introductions of foreign new technologies and products. These events will help exhibitors learn the trend of Chinese import market, related policies and strategies, etc.
The exhibitors, legally registered outside China for at least three years under applicable laws, can apply to attend the expo. Before the expo, the pre-matching service is able to help the exhibitors find potential importers through the strong networks of CCOIC and the free information release on the official website. While after the expo, the exhibitor’s products, which may not have been sold on the spot, can be stored in the warehouse of Kunshan Comprehensive Bonded Area for half a year. During this period, the exhibitors can still seek for potential importers and buyers.
According to Zhang, the preparation work of the expo has been under way. With respect to international promotion, the CCOIC has been sending invitations to its 90 foreign partners, trade association counterparts of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), asking their member enterprises to participate in the expo.
To ensure the effect of the expo, the organizers have already started recruiting exhibitors. So far the preparation for the collection of the enterprises’import intention in Yangtze River Delta, especially in Jiangsu, has been completed. The next work is to establish the national import data.
“The expo will be introduced to my country by the national television station, to encourage the enterprises to attend the expo,” H. E. Awale Ali Kullane, Charged’ Affaires of the Somalia Embassy in China, told China’s Foreign Trade.
“We would like to introduce the expo to the enterprises in our country,” said Louis Jalesa Ofele, First Secretary of the Samoa Embassy in China.
“I am sure the companies in my country will show interest in the expo,” said Simeon Uulenga, First Secretary of the Namibia Embassy in China.
The expo is to be held in the context of the 12th Five Year Plan period (2011-2015), when China will try to meet its domestic demand of economic restructuring and industrial upgrading by means of “transforming the foreign trade growth”. China will attach equal importance to import and export, pay more attention to the expansion of import while maintaining stable export growth.
China is the largest exporter and second importer in the world. In 2010, the import volume reached $1.39 trillion, accounting for 1/10 of the world. The import of mechanical and electrical products and high-tech products increased 30 percent year on year. China’s import of medium and highend consumer goods ranked the second worldwide. Moreover, China, now the second largest economy in the world, is a fastgrowing emerging market.
Data from the Ministry of Commerce showed that in the first half year, the “import expansion” has achieved positive results with the trade surplus continuing to narrow. Imports surged 27.6 percent year-on-year to$829.4 billion from January to June.
Kunshan, only 30 kilometers away from Shanghai, is known for its globalized economy. So far, more than 6,300 investment projects from 56 countries and regions worldwide have settled down in the city.