PAL, SMC, Pagcor sponsor Shanghai exhibition

The Philippine Airlines, San Miguel Corp. and the Philippine Gaming and Amusement Corp. are among the major sponsors of the first exhibition of Philippine products and services in Shanghai on March 27-30.

The fair is being put together by an interagency committee created by President Arroyo under Executive Order 122. The seven-member committee is co-chaired by Trade Secretary Mar Roxas II and Manila Rep. Harry Angping, chairman of the trade and industry committee of the House of Representatives.

Angping said besides PAL, San Miguel and Pagcor, the other major sponsors of the exhibition are Metrobank, the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of the Industry, Inc., Distilleria Limtuaco, Shoemart, Century Canning Corp., Liwayway Corp., Cathay Steel, and Universal Robina Corp.

At least three of the sponsor-companies have a presence in China. San Miguel brews beer there, PAL flies to Beijing, Shanghai and other major Chinese cities, while Metrobank has a branch in Shanghai.

Most of the sponsors are also exhibitors. The fair will be held at the Shanghai Exhibition Center.

There are 166 exhibitor-companies that have confirmed their participation, the biggest number so far in a trade fair held abroad, according to organizers. They will showcase the "best of the best" of Filipino products and services.

Through the exhibition and follow-up contracts, Angping said Filipino businessmen, with government assistance, hope to expand their presence in the huge Chinese import market.

He said the market is worth about $200 billion a year, and as of 2001, the Philippines exported only $1.7-billion worth of products to China.

"That is less than one percent of the China’s import requirements. If we can just hit three percent to five percent, that is $6 billion to $10 billion in export earnings for us from China alone," he said.

He stressed that given the long history of cultural and trade ties between the Philippines and China, "that immediate goal should not be difficult to accomplish."

Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. is sending a fairly large delegation of 15 led by Angping to Shanghai to stress the importance that the House is giving to next week’s fair.

Some local government units have also decided to join the exhibition. Marikina is showcasing its leather products and garments. – Jess Diaz