Hands across ocean as business groups sign up

An online signing ceremony of Canton Fair Global Cooperative Partnership Program is held during the ongoing Canton Fair on Wednesday, adding four new partners to the event.  

Chu Shijia, director-general of the China Foreign Trade Centre, signed agreements with representatives of four business groups from Latin America on Wednesday, marking an official partnership.

The newcomers joining the Canton Fair Global Cooperative Partnership Program are: the Brazil China Chamber of Commerce, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Foundation Argentina, Asia Reps in Chile, and the Colombian Chinese Chamber of Investment and Commerce.

The virtual signing ceremony, designed for business circles in China and Latin America, is part of the ongoing China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, organized by the center.

The move will advance pragmatic collaboration with the parties and thus promote further progress in economic and trade relations, said Chu. He also serves as vice-president and secretary-general of the Canton Fair.

Chu Shijia, Vice-president and secretary-general of the Canton Fair，Director-general of the China Foreign Trade Centre 

Since its inception, the fair has always been held. Having gone through ups and downs, it is making great strides amid the country’s reform and opening-up in the new era and has established itself as China’s top exhibition event, he said.

As a crucial platform for opening-up, the event is considered the barometer and bellwether of the country’s foreign trade. It plays a pivotal role in promoting international cooperation and exchanges in trade and economics, as well as spurring the development of an open global economy, he noted.

The COVID-19 pandemic delivered a sweeping blow to the world economy last year.

The Canton Fair, which has been held online three times, makes positive contributions to aiding a recovery in the world economy, increasing friendly international exchanges, enhancing cooperation in the fight against the virus, and maintaining the global industry supply chain, Chu said.

The 129th Canton Fair features a variety of products on display, in particular with a section dedicated to rural revitalization. The number of exhibits at the fair has set a new high and the exhibition size of imports has maintained stable.

To expand cooperation, assist trade in services and make better use of the fair’s role as a comprehensive opening-up platform, the China Foreign Trade Centre has been advancing its global partnership program, establishing cooperation relations with overseas industrial and commercial heavyweights, Chu said.

Among the attendees were Xia Diya, a commercial counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Argentina; Ji Xiaofeng, economic and commercial counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Chile; Dong Wei, economic and commercial counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Colombia; He Jun, commercial counselor at the Chinese Consulate General in St. Paul, Brazil; Daniel Manucci, president of the Brazil China Chamber of Commerce; Macarena Santos Munoz, executive director of the ICBC Foundation Argentina; Shen Yung-han, director of Asia Reps in Chile; and Jaime Suarez, executive director of the Colombian Chinese Chamber of Investment and Commerce.

To date, the Canton Fair has signed cooperation agreements with 146 organizations from 81 countries and regions, including 23 from Latin America.