Over 500,000 professional buyers set for CIIE

The upcoming second China International Import Expo will attract more than half a million professional buyers, more than 7,000 of whom are from overseas, said the Ministry of Commerce.

This marks a significant increase in both the total number of professional buyers and that of international buyers from the first CIIE, which attracted around 400,000 buyers, about 3,600 of whom were from overseas.

"Such an increase, especially that of international buyers, suggests CIIE's growing international appeal and influence," said Ren Hongbin, China's assistant minister of commerce, at a media briefing on Saturday morning at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai) Co, the venue where the annual event is to take place Nov 5-10.

Growing enthusiasm is also experienced among the exhibitors as demonstrated in the increase of average exhibition space per exhibitor, up from 70 square meters last year to 90 meters, Ren said.

Moreover, 93 percent of commercial exhibitors have their booth design custom made, up by three percentage from last year, Ren added. "Such proves the expo's tangible benefits to exhibitors, purchasers and consumers," Ren said.

More than 3,000 companies from over 150 countries and regions will participate in the second CIIE, according to the ministry.

The top 10 countries and regions in total enterprise exhibition area are the United States, Japan, Germany, China's Hong Kong, South Korea, Italy, France, Austria, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

The expo also offers two free stands to each of the 40 least developed countries to participate, Ren said.

Launched in 2018, the CIIE is the world's first import-themed national-level exhibition. Besides the Business Exhibition, the expo also includes a Country Exhibition where nations will showcase their culture, products and achievements in economic development and trade.