Rona Yircali, chairman of the ICC World Chambers Federation, attended the opening ceremony at the first expo last year to promote trade and cooperation. Provided to China Daily

A window to the world's advanced technologies and products, the second China International Import Expo is on the fast track to becoming China's largest trading platform for imports, said organizers.

With a theme of openness and cooperation, the expo will focus on displaying the newest foreign technologies in strategic industries, including high-end machinery, environmental protection and information technology - the key areas also stressed in China's 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15).

Co-hosted by the China Chamber of International Commerce and the Jiangsu provincial government, the expo will take place from May 15 to 18 in Kunshan.

It is a national-level expo meant to boost China's import demand.

Last year, a total of 677 enterprises from 46 countries and regions, including 21 Fortune 500 companies, attended the first expo, which had an overall attendance of 56,000.

The event comes at a time when economic transformation is being pursued nationwide in the name of sustainable growth.

It will play a vital role in introducing cutting-edge global technologies and products to the emerging Chinese market.

This year, some 80,000 people are expected to visit the expo, which will cover an area of 70,000 square meters.

The second expo has also optimized the planning of its exhibition space.

It will be divided into four zones based on the items on display- high-end machinery and equipment, alternative energy, environmental protection, information technology, brand consumer goods and new materials. There will also be a special zone for auto parts.

Key industries

Products in the environmental protection and machinery categories are among the most popular.

To date, the expo has attracted more than 200 enterprises from green industries. Those enterprises, some of which are from the Netherlands, Finland, Germany and South Korea, will showcase their state-of-the-art technologies, such as water processing devices, solid waste treatment equipment and other ecological products.

The total exhibition area for enterprises related to environmental protection and alternative energy has more than doubled to 8,000 square meters this year.

An official report shows that the central government has projected an accumulated investment of 5 trillion yuan ($802.6 billion) in environmental protection during the 12th Five-Year Plan period.

Meanwhile, a total of more than 30 leading machinery enterprises from the United States, Germany, Czech Republic, Japan and South Korea will also reveal their advanced technologies in numerical control machines at the expo.

One-stop service

Apart from the potential business opportunities, the expo is also trying hard to provide high-level services to exhibitors from around the world.

The organizers have introduced a standardized management system to streamline the application and supervision process for each exhibitor.

Furthermore, an e-service platform now offers one-stop services for exhibitors, including special booth construction, logistics, advertisements, visa invitation, air tickets and hotel booking.

This year, the expo is set to further solidify its status as a professional import expo for trade and exhibition, information exchanges and business cooperation. On Feb 11, the International Chamber of Commerce announced that China International Import Expo is one of the finalists for the Best International Trade Project Award this year.

Zhou Tao contributed to this story

wangjinhui@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 03/08/2013 page14)