Key status reflects countries on the move
China has granted “Guest of Honor” status to 12 countries: Brazil, Canada, Egypt, Germany, Hungary, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, Russia, South Africa, the United Kingdom and Vietnam at the China International Import Expo held for the first time from Monda
Brazil
Brazil is the eighth-largest economic power by GDP in 2017, according to the World Bank. Thanks to its unique geographical position, the country is a leader in agriculture and animal husbandry.
The production yield of Brazil’s coffee, sugar, citrus and soybeans are all ranked first in the world. It’s the fourth-largest corn producer and the largest exporter of beef and chicken.
Last year, China was Brazil’s largest export destination and import-source country. Brazil’s exports to China amounted to $58.58 billion last year and imports were $28.96 billion. Among the Brazilian exports to China, 43 percent were soybeans and other agricultural products, 22 percent was iron ore, and crude oil accounted for 15 percent.
A delegation of 92 Brazilian companies, including the Ronaldo Academy, a franchise of soccer schools established by Brazilian soccer legend Ronaldo Nazario, participate in the CIIE.
Hungary
In 2017, the bilateral trade volume between China and Hungary reached $10.13 billion, a year-on-year increase of 14.1 percent.
The bilateral trade volume reached a record high and it marked the first year that the figure exceeded $10 billion.
Hungary is China’s third-largest trading partner in Central and Eastern Europe, and China is also the country’s largest trading partner outside the European Union.
Since 1984, China and Hungary have signed 22 economic and trade agreements, and Hungary is the first European country to sign a cooperation document with China regarding the Belt and Road Initiative.
China-Hungary bilateral trade is dominated by high value-added electromechanical and high-tech products, including motors, electrical equipment, machinery, vehicles, as well as optical, photographic and medical equipment.
Hungary is the only “Guest of Honor” from Central and Eastern Europe at the CIIE.
The country has been actively promoting its export of products to China and regards the expo as an excellent platform to connect to its Open to the East Policy.
Russia
The Ministry of Commerce announced in September that China has been the largest trading partner of Russia for eight consecutive years.
Since the beginning of this year, Sino-Russian bilateral trade has continued to develop rapidly. The bilateral trade volume in the first eight months of this year reached $67.5 billion, a year-on-year rise of 25.7 percent, and it is expected to reach $100 billion for the whole year.
The trade volume between Russia and China in 2017 was $84 billion. It was notable that Russia surpassed Saudi Arabia to become China’s largest crude oil supplier.
Russia is one of the largest participants in the CIIE and its focus is on industrial and agricultural products.
More than 120 Russian companies participate and their exhibits cover the fields of agricultural products, consumer goods, high-tech equipment, medical products and service trade.
Canada
In 2017, Canada’s GDP was about $1.65 trillion and it is the 10th largest economy in the world, according to the World Bank.
Sino-Canadian trade has become increasingly close in recent years. Last year, the bilateral trade volume between China and Canada was $51.76 billion, a year-on-year increase of 13.3 percent. China’s exports to Canada totaled $31.39 billion, up 14.8 percent yearon-year, and China’s imports from Canada amounted to $20.37 billion, up 11.1 percent compared with the previous year. The main commodities exported by China to Canada included telephones, fax machines, automatic data processing equipment and auto parts. The main commodities imported from Canada were rapeseed, wood pulp, wood and soybeans.
Canadian companies from various sectors, including intelligent and high-end equipment, medical equipment and medical care, food and agricultural products, participate in the Shanghai expo.
Indonesia
Bilateral economic and trade cooperation between China and Indonesia, the largest economy in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, has developed smoothly in recent years, and China has been Indonesia’s largest trading partner for seven consecutive years.
In 2017, bilateral trade between the two countries reached $63.3 billion, a year-on-year increase of 18.3 percent. China’s exports to Indonesia amounted to $34.77 billion, and China’s import value from the country was $28.55 billion.
Indonesia is also an important participant in the Belt and Road Initiative. Since the two countries reached an agreement on the 142-km-long JakartaBandung high-speed railway, the first such railway in Indonesia and China’s first overseas high-speed rail project, China’s investment in Indonesia has more than doubled.
Altogether 32 companies from Indonesia participate in the CIIE. The country’s trade authority said they exhibit various export commodities, such as bird’s nest, palm oil and motor vehicles, and hoped to highlight some products, such as coffee, which have the potential to enter the Chinese market on a large scale.
South Africa
South Africa has been China’s largest trading partner in Africa for eight consecutive years, and China has been South Africa’s largest trading partner for nine years.
The country is rich in mineral resources and is ranked among the top five in the world.
Mining, manufacturing and agriculture are the three pillars of the country’s economy. Apart from diamonds and platinum, South Africa’s fruits, wines and wool are world-famous thanks to its unique geographical location and climate.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Africa.
The bilateral trade volume between the two nations reached $39.17 billion in 2017, an increase of 11.7 percent year on year, setting a record high.
Egypt
As a country involved in the Belt and Road Initiative, Egypt has collaborated with China to establish the China-Egypt Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone.
According to statistics from the General Administration of Customs, import and export volume between Egypt and China reached more than $10.83 billion in 2017. Egypt’s exports to China amounted to $1.34 billion and the country’s imports from China totaled more than $9.49 billion.
China has become Egypt’s largest source of imports, and China jumped to the ninth place on the rankings of Egypt’s export destinations, compared to the 14th in the previous year.
About 40 companies from Egypt participate in the CIIE. Their exhibits cover a wide range of fields, including pharmaceuticals, crafts, clothing, textiles, among others.
Egyptian fruit, including oranges and grapes, are also exhibited.
Mexico
Mexico mainly exports crude oil, manufactured goods, clothing and agricultural products. As a large agricultural country, its exports in many agricultural products, including berries, pineapples and pork, to China increased significantly year on year.
The production yield of avocado of the country is ranked the world’s first and accounts for around onethird of the world’s total market share.
Mexico’s avocado exports to China totaled $25.5 million last year, making China the eighth export destination for the country’s avocado.
Mexico is China’s second-largest trade partner, largest exporting market and third-largest source of imports in Latin America. Sino-Mexico trade volume totaled more than $47 billion in 2017.
Altogether 28 Mexican food enterprises and 10 companies in service industry participate in the Shanghai expo.
United Kingdom
Outside the EU, China is the second-largest trading partner of UK.
In 2017, Sino-UK bilateral trade in goods reached more than $79 billion, an increase of 6.2 percent over the previous year.
Chinese official statistics showed that China’s exports to the UK reached $56.7 billion in 2017, a year-on-year rise of 1.8 percent.
China’s imports from the UK reached $22.3 billion, an increase of 19.4 percent over the previous year.
The country’s national pavilion at the CIIE showcases the world’s leading companies in the fields of healthcare and life sciences, finance and professional services, education, creative industries, artificial intelligence and big data with innovation as the theme.
Well-known UK companies, including Jaguar, Land Rover, British Airways, AstraZeneca, Standard Chartered Bank, also set up booths at the expo.
Germany
Last year, Sino-German trade totaled $168 billion, according to the statistics from the General Administration of Customs. For the second year in a row, China is the largest trading partner for Germany, the largest economy in Europe. China is also Germany’s largest source of imports and its third largest export destination.
Germany’s national pavilion runs under the theme of “Meet Germany”, displaying a selection of the country’s most innovative and high-quality products.
Altogether 170 German companies hold exhibits mainly from high-end manufacturing and automotive sectors, but also with representation from consumer electronics, food, medical equipment, accessory and apparel, and healthcare sectors.
A large milling machine, which is able to reach a precision of 8 micrometers — the highest precision in the world so far — arrived at Shanghai last month for the expo.
Pakistan
China has been Pakistan’s largest trading partner for four consecutive years, and is also the country’s largest source of imports and the third-largest export destination.
In 2017 , China-Pakistan trade totaled $20 billion, according to the statistics from the General Administration of Customs. The country’s main exports to China include cotton products, grains, ore sands, ready-to-wear garments, animal leather, and medical equipment.
The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a trade corridor including roads, railways, oil, gas and cable channels, is a model project in the Belt and Road Initiative.
The corridor with a total investment of $19 billion is expected to drive the Pakistan economy to grow by 1 to 2 percentage points every year and create about 70,000 job opportunities.
For the CIIE, Pakistani enterprises bring food, agricultural products, clothing, and sports goods among other exhibits.
One of the highlights is the soccer balls produced in the country which have been used in the past two World Cups.
Vietnam
Vietnam is China’s largest trading partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The bilateral trade volume between China and Vietnam reached $121.3 billion last year.
China’s more than 90 percent of imported cashews, 60 percent of imported fish, 50 percent of imported coffee, and 40 percent of imported rice, are from the country.
In the first quarter of this year, Vietnam’s exports to China amounted to $9 billion, a year-on-year increase of 46 percent.
Altogether 40 enterprises from the country participate in the CIIE with 60 standard booths.
The exhibits are mainly agricultural products, processed foods, consumer goods, service trade and other products. They are aimed to promote Vietnamese brands and products and strengthen the export of Vietnam’s advantageous products to the Chinese market.