China-ASEAN Expo has formula for success

Source: China Daily | 10-22-2008 08:27

The fifth China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO) has become a widely anticipated event both at home and abroad.

It will begin tomorrow and end on Saturday in Nanning, capital of the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region.

Organizers use the simple equation 10+1>11 to illustrate what CAEXPO means to China and the 10 member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

As the only international trade and investment event that is jointly sponsored by the governments of China and ASEAN countries, the expo plays an instrumental role in developing the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA), deepening strategic partnerships between the two sides and promoting regional cooperation.

Divided into four sections, including commodity trading, investment cooperation, agricultural applied technology and charming cities, the event will host 3,300 exhibition booths this year.

Both Chinese and overseas companies value the expo as an effective platform to seek business opportunities and have shown growing interest in the annual event, as shown by the applications to reserve 3,500 exhibition booths -- far beyond expectations.

So far, 1,222 booths have been taken up by ASEAN exhibitors, accounting for more than one third of the total stands and creating a record for CAEXPO.

While the five countries of Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Myanmar have booked entire exhibition halls, as they did last year, Cambodia has been designated as the "country of honor" and will also join their ranks.