Canton Fair’s 2nd phase starts with influx of intl buyers

The second phase of the 135th session of the China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, kicked off in Guangzhou, South China’s Guangdong Province on Tuesday, attracting about 10,000 domestic and international enterprises to display products such as daily consumer goods and gifts.

Observers said that the spectacular event is an epitome of China’s stable and sound foreign trade. Refuting Western media outlets that bad-mouth the country’s foreign trade sector and economic prospects, they said that the potential of the Chinese economy is far from peaking, since the development of new quality productive forces will bring revolutionary reform to labor productivity and inject long-lasting impetus into the economy.

With the theme of “Quality Home Life,” the second phase has attracted 9,820 on-site exhibitors, and 220 companies from 30 countries and regions will participate in the exhibition, according to the official website of the Canton Fair.

It’s worth noting that 144 companies from 18 Belt and Road Initiative participant countries are attending the fair, accounting for about 65 percent of all foreign exhibitors.

“The sizable increase in overseas buyers during this year’s Canton Fair has greatly strengthened our confidence in getting new clients and exploring new markets,” Wen Ting, a manager with Shenzhen Fu Xingye Import and Export Co, said.

Analysts said that the sound performance of the country’s foreign trade underscores the resilience, potential and vitality of China’s economy, debunking West’s claiming that “China’s foreign trade winter is coming,” or promoting the “Peak China” musings and other fallacies.

Wen Bin, chief economist at China Minsheng Bank, told the Global Times on Tuesday that exports will continue to grow in the second quarter due to a lower base last year and macro-policies to stabilize foreign trade.