Import expo serves as key platform for global trade

What they say

CIIE gave us a fantastic stage to display our full portfolio of testing, inspection and certification services to Chinese customers, and elevated our brand awareness and brought us quality sales leads as our booth received thousands of visitors last year.

In this year's expo, one of our highlights will be 5G testing, as SGS provides testing and certification for thousands of devices including mobile phones, tablets, telematics units, chipsets and models covering 2G to 5G.

It's encouraging to see China's commitment to further opening up markets to foreign companies by providing broader market access, protecting intellectual property, and guaranteeing a level playing field.

The continuous development of the Chinese economy creates increasing business opportunities for testing and inspection companies like SGS, as the Chinese government is introducing more policies to encourage manufacturers to raise quality standards through technological innovations and Chinese customers are paying more attention to the quality, safety and sustainability of products.

Sandy Hao, general manager of SGS China Consumer and Retail Portfolio

At last year's CIIE, our group officially launched the International Merchandise Exchange & Exhibition, which provides cross-border e-commerce platform and supply chain services to overseas clients entering the Chinese market, and it was recognized as one of the expo's permanent exhibition and trade platforms.

At the exhibition, we were able to communicate and discuss cooperation with potential business partners from all over the world, effectively building a strong foundation for the launch of IMX. Participating in the expo provides us a much needed opportunity to have efficient communication with a large quantity of business partners.

There is a strong alignment between CIIE and IMX. Increasing good-quality foreign products, services and companies entering China will not only promote China's structural transformation and upgrading, but also strengthen competition in the domestic market and improve the overall business environment. This will in turn create more opportunities for IMX.

Henry Chan, vice-chairman and executive president, King Wai Group

KPMG is a global network of professional services firms. A large part of its business is generated through inbound and outbound trade activities. CIIE will foster more regional and global trade, connectivity and trust building. This creates many opportunities for KPMG to advise companies on their investments and help them to expand their business.

Through CIIE we can see a huge amount of collaboration that will be key to unlock the potential of social and economic development, while allowing companies to access new market opportunities, to achieve synergies and to manage risks.

KPMG has been working on explaining the implications of CIIE, and to suggest ways in which companies from China and around the world can work together to achieve win-win outcomes.

David Ko, head of audit, KPMG China

At last year's expo, we showcased the many services we customized for Chinese guests; before visiting CIIE, many visitors were unaware that so many brands they had been familiar with, including Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis, W Hotels, Sheraton, and Westin, were all part of the Marriott International family.

Marriott was one of the first exhibitors to confirm its attendance at the second CIIE. We contracted right at the end of the first Expo for a space twice the size of our previous stand. This year, we will display more products and services that are newer and more appealing.

The hotel industry was one of the first industries in China to establish joint ventures once the country became open for business on the world stage and many benefits have accrued over the past 40 years. We are confident that China will continue to open itself up to the world and attract foreign investment. CIIE is a living testament to that.

Jo Chen, manager of communications, Marriott China

China has expanded and accelerated its growth by having access to the global market, and other countries will expand their growth having access to China. CIIE is an event designed to boost imports to China.

For us it is an excellent platform to demonstrate to the market our services, technologies and solutions, and also to solicit input from existing or potential customers of what drives them in today's import process for China-what works well, what problems and challenges do they see in the supply chain.

As a result, we have been able to better align our solutions in the market, especially to the needs of small-and middle-sized enterprises, who might have only a few employees and might not have the expertise to deal with business on a global level.

This is my third year working in China. I think this event is designed for us to develop relationships, and good relations will result in business. I see this as a first step in a long-standing customer relationship.

Harld Peters, president, UPS China

We were the only firm in the infrastructure consulting industry to exhibit in the first CIIE, and had an active participation in the expo last year. We think the expo's theme of New Era, Shared Future is a good fit with our company's vision, which is to build a better world.

The benefits of participating in CIIE include meeting diversified customers and enhancing our communication with local governments. This year, we will leverage that opportunity by holding two events-organizing a City's Vision Symposium on Future Mobility and launching the Chinese version of AECOM's annual global research report Future of Infrastructure: Voice of the People. The report will show how major cities around the world address their problems in city development, which will be a good reference for future urbanization in China.

AECOM welcomes the further opening of market access and a more open and optimized business environment in China, so that our resources and experiences can further contribute to China's future development.

Ian Chung, chief executive, AECOM China