2,000 SZ firms, institutions attend 4th import expo

A robot serving the Fourth China International Import Expo is seen Thursday. China News Service

Shenzhen has organized more than 2,000 enterprises and institutions to attend the Fourth China International Import Expo (CIIE) that will take place in Shanghai from Friday to Wednesday.

The city will hold eight global procurement events and promotions for its business environment at the expo, according to the local commerce bureau.

Shenzhen participants intend to procure a large variety of products at the expo, particularly consumer electronic products and household appliances, clothing and accessories, automobiles and spare parts, intelligent and high-end equipment, food and agricultural produce, and medical devices.

Among the activities will be the 2021 Procurement Matchmaking and Investment Promotion Exchanges Conference scheduled for Friday, at which dozens of Shenzhen enterprises plan to reach letters of intent with overseas suppliers on procurement of a wide range of products, such as food and chemical materials.

The other activities will include the E-commerce Development Financial Summit & Shenzhen (Nanshan) Investment Promotion Conference, an international cooperation forum, and investment promotions organized by Guangming and Bao’an districts and Dapeng New Area.

With an exhibition area of more than 366,000 square meters, this year’s CIIE draws nearly 3,000 businesses from 127 countries and regions, both higher than its last edition.

Participation from Fortune 500 companies and corporate giants will exceed that of the previous edition. Ninety enterprises from 33 least developed countries will participate in the expo.

Online country exhibitions will showcase the Republic of Congo, Kiribati, Mauritius, Solomon Island and Palestine, which are participating in the CIIE for the first time due to the impact of COVID-19.

The World Openness Report 2021 and the Index on Openness for 129 economies since 2008 will be published at a forum.

A high-level forum themed on the 20th anniversary of China’s accession to the WTO will also be held during the expo.

New products will be launched at the expo. Nine global debuts will be featured in the Intelligent Industry & Information Technology section.

The expo will set up a special area for artifacts and artworks for the first time this year. So far, 20 overseas institutions from 11 countries and regions, including the U.K. and Spain, have confirmed their participation in the exhibition. They declared 178 pieces of artifacts and artworks in total, with a total declared value of 2.35 billion yuan (US$386 million).

Digital RMB will be accepted for payments at the exhibition.

The expo has designated 34 hospitals for medical services during the expo. Around-the-clock nucleic acid testing services have been provided to citizens in 21 local hospitals since Oct. 28.