More international, more guests

The 12th China International Fair for Investment and Trade to be held in Xiamen, Fujian province, next month will be highly internationalized, a senior official said.

Compared with last year's fair and the other fairs of the same kind in China, this fair will achieve more in terms of internationalization, said Wang Chao, assistant minister of commerce, at a press meeting in Beijing on July 24.

We will make the annual fair an influential international investment and exhibition platform, which is our goal.

Wang pointed out China would attract more foreign investment thanks to its robust and steady economic development since the nation's reform and opening up 30 years ago.

In addition, Cross-Straits relations have improved substantially in the past months and the process of economic globalization is speeding up, which has further improved China's investment environment and made it more alluring to foreign investment.

This is a historical opportunity and we must seize it, he said.

As foreign countries are encouraged to bring their products, this year's fair will have more items on display.

Wang estimated enterprises and organizations from more than 70 countries and regions, such as the United States, Australia, Brazil and Italy, would bring their products for exhibition this year.

Seven new exhibition areas will be added to the fair, including modern service industry, foreign economic cooperation, property right transactions, African products, Taiwan products, manufacturing equipments and energy-saving and environmentally friendly products.

So far, more than 6,000 projects have been listed for this year's fair.

Most of the projects focused on the fields of infrastructure construction, tourism, agriculture, mineral resources exploitation and manufacturing and processing.

The organizing committee will open an online video interaction system during the fair so that investors who cannot come or come at the last minute will have the opportunity to participate in the fair.

As the fair plays an increasingly important role in international investment and exhibition, more multi-lateral activities will be held in the fair, such as the Pacific Islands Forum, Asia-Oceania software park summit, China-Portugal forum and China-Japan investment promotion meeting.

Minister-level meetings on investment, trade and tourism will be held during the Pacific Islands Forum.

It is estimated that about 500 delegations from more than 120 countries and regions will join the fair this year.

Guests to the fair will also have the chance to join several symposiums on hot issues in global economy and investment, and the new trends in China's economic and social progress.

The Global Investment Forum, to be held in the fair, will invite distinguished guests from home and abroad to make important speeches.