The lingering global economic slump has failed to dampen the enthusiasm of foreign exhibitors seeking opportunities for partnerships with domestic companies at China's biggest high-tech fair, which is being held in Shenzhen from Nov 16 to 21.

According to the organizers of the 14th China High-Tech Fair (CHTF), 28 delegations of exhibitors from 19 countries and regions have been organized to attend the fair, up 10 percent from one year ago.

In addition to frequent attendees from such countries as the United States, Germany, Russia, South Korea, Canada and Australia, there will be newcomers from Iran, New Zealand, India and Colombia, according to the organizers.

For the fifth year, Denmark has sent a delegation led by Henrik Brandt Jensen, Asia-Pacific regional director of Invest in Denmark, the nation's official investment promotion organization.

"The fair is China's largest and most influential exhibition on high technology. It's the most important event, and we cannot afford to miss it," Jensen said.

Every year the fair continues to impress him with increasing numbers of exhibitors, high-level delegations and experts.

"Shenzhen is one of the country's most important hubs for technology. We have organized many seminars, ministerial visits and VIP dinners to maintain the best relationship between Denmark and Shenzhen," he said.

The fair is China's most important showcase for its latest domestically developed technologies and high-tech products. It has helped his delegation meet many key clients and provides more approaches to new and innovative companies, Jensen said.

"We would like to collaborate on high-level seminars where we can invite Danish ministerial-level officials and experts to promote the Danish foothold at the fair in the future," he said.

The annual fair, which was approved by the State Council of China, is jointly sponsored by the nation's ministries of commerce, science and technology, industry and information technology, development and reform, education, human resources and social security, agriculture, and intellectual property as well as the national academies for sciences and engineering and the Shenzhen city government.

The participation of so many heavyweight organizations demonstrates the importance of technology in the development of the country and the unparalleled position of the fair.

Chance to raise funds

By helping them to successfully raise funds from domestic or overseas stock markets, the fair has facilitated the development of at least 230 companies over the past 13 years, said Gao Guohui, deputy secretary-general of Shenzhen city government. Many of them were at the startup stage when they first came to the fair, including Tencent, China's largest Internet company, which got its first venture capital there, Gao said.

Gao also attributed the robust economic growth of Shenzhen partly to the fair, which has served as a major driver of the city's technological innovation and industrial transformation from a labor-intensive economy into one that focuses on high added value.

The city's gross domestic product is expected to achieve an annual surge of more than 9 percent or even a double-digit increase despite the fact that China lowered the projected growth for the nation as a whole to 7.5 percent.

The opportunities available at the fair explain why so many foreign countries are participating during a stagnant economic period, Gao told reporters.

They are taking advantage of the fair to show the best of their latest high-tech achievements, strengthen ties with Chinese partners and look for new opportunities, he added.

Variety of activities

These delegations, while organizing a number of excellent high-tech companies to attend the fair, also arranged a variety of activities to enhance communication with Chinese government bodies and companies.

The South Korean delegation held an economic and trade investment seminar with Central China's Henan province again this year in a bid to establish a closer contact between Chinese and Korean companies.

According to the organizers, four Korean government institutes will attend - the Korean Incheon Development Institute for the Information Industry, the Korean Chonju Information Culture Development Institute, the Ulsan Support Center for Small and Medium-Sized Companies and the Korean Jeju Scientific and Technical Park.

These groups are partnering their IT companies with Chinese counterparts at the fair, where corporate representatives from South Korea can have face-to-face talks with Chinese importers, exporters, producers, dealers and agents.

The Russian delegation will focus on promoting its technology in the fields of aerospace and aviation, industrial and agricultural infrastructure, and new technologies for social development.

Multi-functional robots will also be a major highlight for foreign buyers.

Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology has displayed dozens of such robots that could be substituted for human workers, rehabilitation assistants, study assistants or just for entertainment.

Among the industrial robots is one that is able to tighten screws more quickly and precisely than 100 human workers. One of the entertainment robots can even dance to the popular Korean song Gangnam Style.

Covering a total exhibition area of over 110,000 square meters at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center, the fair this year has four professional exhibitions - information technology and products, electronics, photoelectric flat-panel displays, and alternative energy, energy conservation and environmental protection products.

Chinese companies are displaying the latest technologies in cloud computing; telecommunications network integration, television and broadcast networking, Internet, and smart homes.

chenhong@chinadaily.com.cn