By Peng Fei
The second China International Import Expo (CIIE) is set to become one of the most expected and outstanding international events at the end of the year, with expanded scale, better quality and stronger influence than its first session.
More than 3,000 enterprises from over 150 countries and regions, and more than 500,000 buyers and visitors from home and abroad have signed up for the expo. The average exhibition area owned by each enterprise stands at 93 square meters, an increase of more than 20 percent from the first CIIE.
From July to October, the organizing committee of the CIIE received about 70,000 phone calls for inquiry, 21,000 more than those in the last year.
At the first CIIE, there were 17 kinds of certificates, and some participators had to take many with them as they had different identities. This year, the number was reduced to five to better facilitate the attendees.
Besides, the CIIE media center will hold several press conferences for different organizations to release latest policies, research outcomes and annual reports. In addition, an experience zone, an activity area, and a place for business negotiations were established to promote purchasing and business matchmaking.
While learning from the successful experiences and practices of its inaugural version, the second CIIE underscores innovation in running the exhibition, with an aim of building itself into a platform for business cooperation and information sharing.
The CIIE has created huge spillover effect, as its appeal and influence keep expanding. To turn the exhibits into commodities and develop the 6-day event into an all-year-round activity, Shanghai has established 30 permanent trading platforms to display global imports during the 6-day expo and the year after.
The Hongqiao Import Commodity Exhibition and Trading Center in Shanghai opened in May is a major platform under such scheme, where bonded exhibition, transaction, logistics, storage and customs clearance services are all available. By October, more than 400 brands and 2,500 products from 26 countries have entered the center.
Meanwhile, the spillover effect is also pushing mechanism construction. To ease customs clearance, Shanghai Customs has set up an exclusive office at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai), the venue of the CIIE. Today, the office has become a regular facility, providing comprehensive support and services for other international exhibitions.
The CIIE reflects China’s strong resolve and actions to open its market to the world. Turning into an ongoing process, it has gained wide applause from domestic and foreign merchants.
At the first CIIE, it took just 72 hours for a dairy company from New Zealand to deliver its fresh milk from the place of origin to Chinese consumers. In less than a year, the company has extended its offline sales channels to 26 provincial-level administrative regions in China, and made its products attainable for customers in all provincial-level administrative regions in China on online platforms.
After the first CIIE, Chinese consumers in third-and fourth-tier cities or even remote mountainous regions could have access to products exhibited at the expo.
The Leksell Gamma Knife Icon by Swedish medical equipment producer Elekta made its debut in China at last year’s CIIE. The cutting-edge instrument has been put into use in Shanghai since February 2019, having served more than 2,000 patients so far.
It proves that the CIIE could not only promote trade balance, but also become a part of people’s lives, bringing a concrete sense of gain to them.
Last month, the International Monetary Fund lowered its global growth forecast for 2019 to 3 percent in its latest World Economic Outlook report. One of the main reasons for the reduction is the uncertainties of global trade.
Against the backdrop of rising trade protectionism and anti-globalization, the CIIE, which will only become better, has not only manifested China’s determination to expand opening-up, but also injected new driving force into global economy.
(Source: People’s Daily)
