Chinese import expo sets to inject fresh momentum into open world economy

As China’s key move to actively open its market, the second China International Import Expo (CIIE) is set to inject fresh momentum into an open world economy.

This year’s CIIE scheduled from Nov. 5 to 10 sees a rising number of participating companies, new products and cutting-edge technologies as well as the expanding space for exhibitions.

Official data show the import-themed fair this year will attract more than 250 of the world’s top 500 or leading companies, showing the fair’s growing influence. The exhibition area will rise to 360,000 square meters, up by 60,000 square meters from last year.

“Set up by China and shared by the world, the CIIE injects vitality and confidence into the building of an open world economy,” China’s Commerce Minister Zhong Shan said.

WIDER OPENING-UP

Mohammad Nurus Safa, a Bangladeshi businessman, will soon have his second group of commodities shipped to Shanghai for the CIIE.

“This year we will bring unique local embroidery products to the expo, so that more Bangladeshi people can share development opportunities brought by the ‘China express train’,” said Safa, founder of Dada Bangla Limited.

Safa’s company is one of the 3,000 enterprises from about 150 countries and regions having signed up for this year’s expo.

Regarding the CIIE as a great platform to reach customers of every description, Fabrice Megarbane, CEO of L’Oreal China, said the company will exhibit 11 brands in the new high-end section of the consumer goods exhibition area.

“In addition to the opportunities brought by the import expo itself, China’s constantly enhanced business environment has also impressed us,” said Anna E, public affairs director of Mars China.

China’s new opening-up policies this year have provided greater impetus for foreign companies to increase investment in the world’s second-largest economy.

On July 30, China put into force revised negative lists for foreign investment market access, introducing greater opening-up in such sectors as services, manufacturing and mining, and allowing foreign investors to run majority-share-controlling or wholly-owned businesses in more sectors.

In August, China announced a master plan for new pilot free trade zones (FTZs) in six provincial-level regions, bringing the total number of its pilot FTZs to 18. The FTZs will test new styles of foreign investment management, trade facilitation and transformation of government functions to better integrate the economy with international practices.

The import expo not only boosts the import of goods and services, but also promotes the upgrading of foreign investment through the pull of trade and the market, said Min Shilin, executive deputy director of the Administration Committee of Shanghai Hongqiao Central Business District. A bonded logistics center in the Hongqiao CBD was launched in September to offer one-stop trading services to support the CIIE.

MORE FRUITFUL ACHIEVEMENTS

The first import expo in Shanghai last November accelerated the entry of foreign brands into more inland regions in China, especially the country’s third- to fifth-tier towns and cities, highlighting the potential of the huge Chinese market.

At the first CIIE, Safa’s company exhibited a variety of local jute handicrafts, such as carpets, baskets and bags. The products, many of which were made by impoverished women in Bangladesh, attracted attention of visitors and buyers.

“The CIIE opportunities are contributing to global poverty reduction efforts,” Safa said. Thanks to the first CIIE, these Bangladeshi handicrafts are now sold at a high-end department store in Shanghai. Three months after the first CIIE, milk products of a New Zealand brand showcased at the expo appeared in a county supermarket in northwest China’s Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. In a bonded trading center in southwestern Chongqing Municipality, foreign commodities such as Russian ice cream, Georgian wine and Kenyan decorations have become a hit among local consumers.

The first CIIE has drawn more than 3,600 enterprises from 172 countries, regions and international organizations, attracting more than 400,000 domestic and overseas purchasers.

Deals for intended one-year purchases of goods and services worth a total of 57.83 billion U.S. dollars were reached in the six-day event. Many of the goods were imported via the China-Europe freight rail service network, which has pushed forward China’s opening-up and boosted trade cooperation with overseas markets.

The facilitated import policies, such as reduced import tariffs and simplified customs clearance process, also make foreign brands reach the Chinese market faster. A batch of fresh milk leaving a New Zealand farm on Monday can reach Chinese dinner tables as soon as Wednesday. Food traders are preparing to import more fresh and frozen food to the Chinese consumers.

“The first CIIE reinforced our confidence in China’s business environment policies and enabled us to see the country’s continuously growing domestic market demand,” said Megarbane.

“The second CIIE will build a platform for the launch and display of new products and technologies. It demonstrates China’s determination and confidence to implement free trade, and will further improve people’s living quality and promote domestic consumption,” said Sun Chenghai, vice director of CIIE Bureau.(This news came from Khmertimes.com)