Wide International Participation and Record-breaking Scale: Highlights of the 4th China-CEEC Expo

 

 

Ningbo, on the coast of the East China Sea, will usher in a national event!

From May 22 to 25, the 4th China-CEEC Expo & International Consumer Goods Fair (hereinafter referred to as the 4th China-CEEC Expo) will be held in Ningbo with the theme of "Embracing Innovation, Advancing Practical Cooperation, and Shaping the Future". It is co-organized by the People's Government of Zhejiang Province and the Ministry of Commerce.

On the afternoon of May 9, the State Council Information Office held a press conference to introduce China's economic and trade cooperation with CEECs and the 4th China-CEEC Expo & International Consumer Goods Fair. Vice Minister of Commerce Yan Dong, Vice Governor of Zhejiang Province Lu Shan, Mayor of Ningbo Tang Feifan, and Director-General of the Department of European Affairs of the Ministry of Commerce Yu Yuantang attended and answered questions from reporters.

What are the highlights of the 4th China-CEEC Expo? As the first China-CEEC Economic and Trade Cooperation Demonstration Zone in the country, how can Ningbo use the important platform of the Expo to deepen high-standard opening up? This press conference gave the answer.

More "Central and Eastern Europe", more "international"

In terms of exhibition scale, the Central and Eastern European exhibition area of this Expo has reached 20,000 square meters, and more than 400 exhibitors are invited to participate in the exhibition. More than 8,000 Central and Eastern European specialty products such as Czech beer, Slovenian honey, Hungarian down products, etc. will be unveiled in a concentrated manner. The exhibition area, number of exhibitors, and number of exhibited goods have all set new highs. It is expected to attract 15,000 professional visitors, including more than 3,000 overseas buyers.

Moreover, this Expo will set up a Charming Central and Eastern Europe Zone for the first time, with 5 modules of "books, art, painting, printing, and travel" to display the cultural customs of CEECs. For example, in the "books" module, more than 400 books co-published by China and CEECs will be exhibited; in the "travel" module, the most representative cultural landscapes of 14 CEECs will be exhibited.

From the perspective of event arrangement, this Expo will hold 11 key activities such as the opening ceremony, Central and Eastern European commodity procurement, and investment promotion; 4 mechanism-based activities, namely the Ninth Meeting of the China-CEEC Joint Chamber of Commerce, the 7th China-CEEC Dialogue on Customs, Inspection and Quarantine Cooperation, the Mayors Forum, and the China-Central and Eastern Europe International Regatta; more than 50 matchmaking activities by industry and country, reflecting the characteristics of "small but practical", "small but fine" and "small but beautiful".

From the perspective of international participation, this year's expo has expanded to "Central and Eastern Europe +"-in addition to exhibitors from 14 CEECs, it also attracted exhibitors from 9 countries including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. Exhibitors from 8 countries are participating for the first time. The international organizations such as the World Bank, international business associations such as the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China, and internationally renowned companies such as Sanofi, Novartis AG, and Morgan Stanley are invited to attend the Expo, greatly enhancing their international influence.

Be a good host and hold the expo well

The Cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European Countries is an important part of China-Europe relations. In recent years, Ningbo has adhered to the spirit of openness, cooperation and win-win, promoted pragmatic cooperation with Central and Eastern European countries, and served as a good host for the Expo, making greater contributions to serving the overall national situation.

Since the launch of the China-CEEC Economic and Trade Cooperation Demonstration Zone in 2018, Ningbo's trade volume with CEECs has grown at an average annual rate of 18.3%. The trade volume between Ningbo and CEECs reached RMB 56.13 billion in 2024, 3 times that of 2017. In the first quarter of this year, Ningbo's total import and export volume with CEECs reached RMB 15.29 billion, an increase of 19.8% over the same period last year.

At present, Ningbo has established friendly relations with 19 cities in Central and Eastern European countries, and has built cooperation platforms such as the China-CEEC Innovation Cooperation Research Center and the China-CEEC Alliance of TVET Institutions for Industry-Education Collaboration. It has carried out a series of activities such as the China-CEEC Exchange Week, Digital Trade Cooperation Exchange Conference, and Innovation China Tour, and continued to deepen cooperation in education, science and technology, humanities, tourism and other fields.

The Central and Eastern European Specialty Commodities Perennial Pavilion and the CEEC Industrial Cooperation Park, located in Ningbo, have become important positions for strengthening economic and trade cooperation with Central and Eastern European countries. Moreover, Ningbo is playing a demonstration effect to promote the development of linkage zones of the China-CEEC Economic and Trade Cooperation Demonstration Zone in 6 provinces such as Binjiang and Ouhai.

To ensure the smooth holding of this China-CEEC Expo, Ningbo will make "additions" in details, services and collaboration, fully learn from the experience of hosting the previous three expos and the effective practices of co-hosting major events such as the 19th Asian Games, focus on key links such as guest arrival and departure, catering and accommodation, transportation dispatch, venue operation, etc., polish the details one by one, improve bilingual signs, strengthen volunteer guidance, facilitate payment methods, and enhance the level of reception guarantee for guest exhibitors.

At the same time, Ningbo will take advantage of new changes such as the addition of multiple small matchmaking scenes to this Expo, and take the initiative to provide exhibition layout, project promotion, economic and trade matchmaking and other services according to the needs of guest exhibitors, help improve the efficiency of resource project matching between supply and demand sides, and promote more economic, trade and investment cooperation results, vigorously creating a strong atmosphere of "being a good host and holding the expo well".

 

 

 

 

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          Disclaimer：The above content is translated from Chinese version of cnnb. The cnnb version shall prevail.