Asean trade fair in China rakes in $8.1B

MANILA, Philippines - One of China’s biggest trade fairs this year raked in over $8.068 billion in total trade volume after only five days, giving ASEAN and other South Asian nations a chance to feature and sell their products and services in a grand exhibit in Kunming City in Yunnan province.

The 20th ASEAN Import and Export Trade Fair coinciding with the 5th South Asian Trade Fair successfully ended over the weeekend with profits increasing 15.9 percent compared to that of 2011.

Officials said the total value of exports and imports reached $1.8 billion, an increase of 10 percent compared to that of last year.

Of the total trade volume, $5.9 billion accounts for direct foreign investments to Yunnan province, up 14 percent compared to 2011.

Officials said there were over 100,000 visitors during the exhibit, participated in by some 12,000 high-quality manufacturers from various countries.

Results of the trade fair showed that the same caught the attention of more than 23,000 serious buyers who spent a lot of money doing serious business.

With 504 booths showcasing different products and services from 30 participating countries and regions, the event was expected to boost business relations between the Southern China and neighboring nations.

Zheng Weichuan, deputy secretary of the Communist Party of China’s Yunnan Committee, said the success of the trade fair anchors on “a strong and stable group of purchasers.”

He said the annual activity gets better and bigger each year because of Yunnan’s effort to make the province the new gateway to trade and a platform for commerce in Southern China.

Zheng said the 20th ASEAN Trade Fair and the 5th South Asian Trade Fair also seeks to build partnerships, friendships and business ties with other countries in Southeast and South Asia.

The STAR, which was invited by the Chinese Embassy in Manila to witness the event, was able to breeze through huge halls of booths put up by various countries featuring their country’s products.

The trade fair featured different goods like coffee from Malaysia, water purifiers from Taiwan, elegant jade products from Myanmar, wood furniture from Thailand, silver from Cambodia, woodworks from Laos, wood products and carvings from Vietnam, handicrafts from Iran, and wine from Australia, among others.