The 132nd Canton Fair Conducted Steady Operation since Opening - News on Canton Fair

On October 25, Xu Bing, Spokesperson of the Canton Fair and Deputy Director General of China Foreign Trade Centre, introduced the operation of the 132nd Canton Fair since its opening to press from home and abroad.

Xu said that when the 20th CPC National Congress was successfully convened, the 132nd Canton Fair opened as a glorious mission. The Central Committee of CPC and the State Council set great store by the Canton Fair. Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, under the strong leadership of the Ministry of Commerce of PRC and the People’s Government of Guangdong Province, and thanks to the concerted efforts of relevant ministries, local commerce departments, China’s diplomatic and consular missions and all the staff, the 132nd Canton Fair has operated steadily since its opening on Oct 15th, achieved breakthroughs in many aspects and helped enterprises secure more orders and grow markets as well as made contribution to the steady progress of foreign trade.

Steady and secure operation of the Canton Fair website. The 132nd Canton Fair has adopted a theme of “connecting domestic and international circulations”, and set up columns such as Exhibitors and Products, Global Business Matchmaking, Product Release, Exhibitors on Live, VR Exhibition Hall, News & Events, Services & Support in the three sections of the website, i.e., online display, trade matchmaking and cross-border e-commerce zone. By October 24th (same below), the official website has received an accumulated number of 10.42 million visitors with 38.56 million visits, up by 3.27% and 13.75% respectively. With the goal of improving matchmaking results and user experience, the 132nd Canton Fair has optimized website functions on the basis of “register, find products and conduct negotiations”, and enabled more complete registration, more accurate search, more convenient matchmaking, more friendly experience and a safer platform. The website has been spoken highly of by exhibitors and buyers alike.

A record-breaking scale of exhibitors and products. The 132nd Canton Fair has expanded the scale of exhibiting companies to benefit more enterprises. The number of exhibitors totaled 35,000, a 40% increase over the last session; the number of products registered 3.3 million, a 10% increase over the last session. Both these two numbers have hit a historic high. The structure of exhibitors has been further optimized. Altogether 5,000 brand companies and quality enterprises with titles such as national high and new technological enterprise, China’s time-honored brand, AEO certification by China Customs and national enterprise technology center, up by 5% over the last session. Among all uploaded products, the number of smart, green and low-carbon products and those with self-owned intellectual property saw an increase of 21%, 11% and 14% respectively.

A historic high of buyer source country. The Canton Fair has expanded its “friend’s circle” of foreign trade, and increased its global partners of industrial and commercial organizations to 177. The number of buyer source country has increased. 510,000 overseas buyers from 229 countries and regions have registered their company information. Remarkable progress has been made in developing the Belt and Road markets. 284,600 buyers were from Belt and Road countries, taking up 55.72% of the total. More professional buyers have attended the Fair, including 72 large multinational corporations, up by 41.18% compared with the 131st session. At the same time, Chinese enterprises have sped up growing the domestic market, attracting 24,900 domestic buyers to attend the Fair, 9000 more than the 131st session.

Remarkable achievements made in trade matchmaking. The 132nd Canton Fair has held more than 80 "Trade Bridge" matchmaking events and "Discover Canton Fair with Bee and Honey" activities, covering 46 markets around the world, including the United States, Germany, France, and 26 Belt and Road countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, as well as Hong Kong. In the “Multinationals Matchmaking Week”, more than 10 large retailers including Big Lots from the United States, Auchan from France, Kawan Lama Group from Indonesia and Lulu from the United Arab Emirates have participated and achieved intentional orders with many Chinese exhibitors. Matchmaking activities on new energy products, gifts, textile and garments, machinery, auto parts, furniture, food, etc. have been held to promote more than 20 national foreign trade transformation and upgrading bases in Guangdong, Zhejiang, Anhui and other provinces. A series of dual circulation promotion activities have been hosted, where "one-on-one" accurate matchmaking activities between domestic buyers and exhibitors were organized, targeting industries with strong domestic and international consumption demand. Diversified and specialized matchmaking events have been tailored for targeted markets, industries, and clients, delivering fruitful outcomes and facilitating a large number of orders, which were widely applauded.

Active online communication. More than 115,200 instant messages were sent and 14,734 sourcing requests published by buyers. 78,152 business cards of suppliers and buyers have been exchanged online. Exhibitors have organized 79,000 live-streaming. A total of 200 Canton Fair Selections Launch activities in 7 themes have been held, namely Electronics & Household Electrical Appliances, Building & Home Decor, Industrial Manufacturing, Hardware & Tools, Household Items & Consumer Goods, Fashion Life, and Health & Recreation.

More diversified trade services. An online-offline integrated model has been adopted to handle IPR complaints. To enrich information service, 10 forums in 6 themes have been held to help companies grasp market and industrial trends. The Canton Fair Design Award has been upgraded, attracting 2,040 products from 1,074 organizations. 139 products have won the Best of the Best Award, Gold Award, Silver Award and Bronze Award and 2 products the Sustainability Award. New trade models and services have been introduced, including 41 companies providing China-Europe Railway Express service, shipment, cross-border e-commerce, and overseas warehouses, optimizing the trade ecosystem for foreign trade companies. In the Cross-border E-commerce zone on the Canton Fair official website, 5 cross-border e-commerce platforms and 132 comprehensive pilot zones were listed to offer companies more ways of exploring the market. 8 organizations in the Financial Service zone, receiving 111,700 visits, have provided relevant services for companies; altogether 4,987 loans have been granted and 59,463 payments settled. The Canton Fair Call Centre has provided efficient, all-weather, intelligent and multilingual services; specifically, more than 46,100 consultations were received, with a 99% service connection rate and an over 98% satisfaction rate.

Rural companies facilitated to develop markets. The 132nd Canton Fair set up the “Rural Vitalization” zone once again, open for all enterprises from formerly poor regions. The Zone was joined by 933 companies from 21 provinces, cities, or autonomous regions. 46,400 products were uploaded in the zone, including 12,400 new products and 9900 green and low-carbon ones. Many companies displayed their products and company image in multiple dimensions, networked with buyers, received orders, and expanded domestic and international markets via the Canton Fair. Through driving industrial upgrading, these companies have promoted industrial development with more characteristics, scale production, and branding.

Xu stated that from October 25, 2022, to March 15, 2023, the Canton Fair would enter a phase of regular operation. Website functions except for live-streaming and scheduling appointment will remain available. Exhibitors and buyers from all over the world are welcome to continue "surfing" online, to explore potential business opportunities and achieve win-win outcomes.

Xu said media outlets worldwide produced well-designed and multi-dimensional reports on the Canton Fair, telling the story and spreading the voice of the Fair in this special period, thus creating a positive public opinion atmosphere. Domestic and international media are welcome to continuously follow and cover the virtual Canton Fair and the new achievements of trade cooperation between Chinese and foreign enterprises.

Canton Fair Call Centre

Canton Fair Hong Kong Representative Office