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Trade fair a success despite economic gloom

By Du Wenjuan (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2009-04-10 14:18

The 13th Investment & Trade Forum for Cooperation between East and West China (ITFCEW) ended Wednesday afternoon, attracting foreign investment worth about $5.01 billion, organizers of the trade forum said Thursday.

The northwestern Chinese province of Shaanxi alone bagged contracts with foreign partners worth $4.98 billion, an increase of 37.6% compared to last year. Domestic investment projects signed at the fair reached nearly 395.6 billion yuan.

Despite the deepening global economic downturn, the largest annual fair in western China attracted 44 countries and regions, including China’s Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. Of the 120,000 business people in attendance, 5,200 were from abroad.

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For the first time, the fair featured a pavilion themed at tourism and culture in an effort to seek more cooperation opportunities from home and abroad. According to Shaanxi's tourism administration, tourism investment contracts signed in the province have reached 1.83 billion yuan.

Tourism agencies from countries including South Korea, Indonesia and Czech Republic also launched promotions at the fair.

Sponsored by seven State committees and ministries, as well as 28 governments in provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, the annual fair has become a major event in Xi'an since its 1997 launch.