【CGTN】One-on-one with Deputy Secretary General Zhang Sihong

The 135th Canton Fair, also known as the China Import and Export Fair, is underway in Guangzhou. It's considered a key indicator for China's foreign trade, and showcases emerging trends. CGTN's Cao Chufeng talks to Zhang Sihong, deputy secretary general of the Fair, to learn about the highlights of this edition.

CAO CHUFENG CGTN Reporter "The Canton Fair has always been regarded as a 'barometer' for China's foreign trade, helping us detect new trends. In this session of the fair, have you noticed any such trend?"

ZHANG SIHONG Deputy Secretary General of Canton Fair Deputy Director, China Foreign Trade Center "From the supply side, firstly, the number of innovative enterprises has significantly increased. There are over 5,500 high-quality enterprises, with titles such as national-level high-tech company, manufacturing industry champions, and 'small giants,' a 20-percent increase compared to the previous session. From the demand side, as of April 17, more than 108,000 overseas buyers from 212 countries and regions attended, a 23-percent increase compared to the same period for the last session. The presence of overseas buyers shows a positive trend, indicating significant development opportunities in the Chinese market as well as global confidence in the Chinese economy."

CAO CHUFENG CGTN Reporter "Strengthening strategic emerging industries and actively developing future industries are major goals of China's industrial development. Are there exhibits or events related to emerging and future industries at this session? How are the products of such industries performing at the fair?"

ZHANG SIHONG Deputy Secretary General of Canton Fair Deputy Director, China Foreign Trade Center "At this session of the Canton Fair, nearly 3,600 exhibiting companies are related with themes such as digital technology and intelligent manufacturing. They will showcase over 90,000 intelligent products, including brain-computer interface bionic hands, automatic navigation transportation equipment, and AI translation devices. Meanwhile, the Canton Fair's online platform will increase VR factory tours, 3D photography, and other uses of digital technology, assisting companies in accelerating the digital transformation."

CAO CHUFENG CGTN Reporter "The Canton Fair is China's oldest international trade fair, yet over the decades, it continues to maintain tremendous vitality. Including, for the past couple of days, the number of foreign buyers participating offline increased significantly compared to the same period in the last session. What do you think are some of the reasons behind this?"

ZHANG SIHONG Deputy Secretary General of Canton Fair Deputy Director, China Foreign Trade Center "China has the most comprehensive categories of manufacturing industries globally, and the Canton Fair serves as a comprehensive stage for showcasing Chinese manufacturing. Secondly, the Canton Fair has strict qualification standards for exhibitors. They can represent the innovative development level of Chinese manufacturing, creation, and products. Thirdly, there's abundant industrial information, with high value for attendees. Fourthly, the transaction results are excellent. Since it was established, the Canton Fair has accumulated export transactions of approximately 1.5 trillion U.S. dollars."