China’s maiden Int’l Expo to attract over 100 countries

Over 100 countries and regions are expected to participate in the maiden China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai.

It is expected that thousands of enterprises from these countries will attend the event, bringing up to a million commodities and services to the Chinese market.

China is therefore inviting Ghanaian manufacturers to enter its vast market to exhibit their products and to take advantage of this great opportunity.

Economic and Commercial Counselor of the Chinese Embassy, Chai Zhijing said the exhibition is an opportunity for local business owners to woo foreign investors into Ghana.

He said, “At the moment, as far as biological trade is concerned, Ghana is one of our top 10 trading partners in Africa.”

“But at the moment, Ghana’s trade with China is in a deficit. So that means that Ghana buys more from China than it exports.” Mr Zhijing said in an interview with JoyBusiness after a media briefing in Accra.

“So I think this Import Expo will be a very good opportunity for Ghana to show its potential; what is can offer to the Chinese consumers,” he added.

Deputy Trades Minister, Carlos Ahenkorah expressed the Ministry’s commitment to supporting local manufacturers and business owners in this regard.

He said the Ministry is considering a proposal to acquire a pavilion in China to aid Ghanaian exhibitors.

“We want to take advantage of the early bird offer and have a whole pavilion to ourselves outside the individual enterprises that are going to have their own,” he said.

“If our request is accepted; if our one-month moratorium is given, I can assure you that within the month of February we would be able to affirm our commitment to take a pavilion for Ghana in the expo,” he added.

The maiden China International Import Exposition will be held in Shanghai from November 5, 2018 to November 10, 2018.

Changing trends

Over the past decade, China’s annual growth rate of retail sales have stayed above 10%. While Chinese consumers are now starting to value quality over price, imported goods are gaining popularity.

In the past, importing market was dominated by large overseas companies. Nowadays, small and medium-sized businesses are selling huge amounts of products into China via new channels, such as shopping agents, supermarkets, and E-commerce.

China’s food and agricultural imports keep growing in recent years. In 2016, total import of food reached $50 billion, and import of agricultural products were more than $110 billion.