The China International Import Expo, the world's first import-themed national-level expo, hosted a road show in Shanghai on June 28.
To promote the achievements of the inaugural event last year and highlight the expo's goal of bringing together more participants for this year's edition, which will kick off on Nov 5, the CIIE Bureau and regional commerce departments co-hosted a series of road shows in major Chinese cities.
The matchmaking event in Shanghai, organized by the CIIE Bureau and the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, is the expo's fourth stop following appearances in Hangzhou in Zhejiang province, Nanning in Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region and Shenzhen in Guangdong province.
More than 200 exhibitors and buyers who have announced their participation in the second edition of the expo attended the road show at the National Exhibition and Convention Center. Among the exhibitors were well-known multinationals such as BSH Appliances Group and Unilever, as well as Chinese business giants like China Resources, Alibaba and NetEase.
Liu Fuxue, deputy director of the CIIE Bureau, said that the second expo will feature more enterprises offering augmented reality and virtual reality products, smart hardware for elderly care, automobiles and industrial machines.
According to the organizer, the second CIIE will occupy 300,000 square meters for its enterprise and business exhibitions. New areas for outdoor exhibitions will also be introduced, allowing for the display of autonomous driving vehicles and large-scale mechanical devices.
In addition, the former consumer electronics and household appliances exhibition area will be transformed to the new Sci-Tech Life Hall, featuring smart household appliances, service robots, online entertainment, wearable equipment, high-definition display and new technology for the sports industry.
Global Fortune 500 enterprises such as Panasonic and Foxconn have already signed up for the second CIIE.
According to Sun Chenghai, deputy director of the CIIE Bureau, the expo can help private companies and small- and medium-sized enterprises to better understand the international market, stay abreast of the latest trends and identify new business opportunities.