China Merchants Group invites foreign partners to CIIE

The president of China Merchants Group (CMG), Li Jianhong, was invited to the opening ceremony of the first China International Import Expo (CIIE) on Nov 5, and attended the parallel session on trade and opening of Hongqiao International Economic and Trade Forum in Shanghai.

He made remarks at the parallel session and discussed promotion of economic globalization and a new round of trade development driven by opening-up with experts on international industries.

The first CIIE, co-organized by China’s Ministry of Commerce and the government of Shanghai, opened on Nov 5 and will last to Nov 10.

CMG is an active participant at the CIIE and made detailed preparations for the event.

The first CIIE is held in Shanghai on Nov 5.

CMG invites qualified foreign partners to display at its booth, showing the benefits of win-win cooperation

This year marks the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening-up. The CIIE shows China’s sincerity in further opening its market and boosting international trade and cooperation. It will bring more opportunities for the world’s development and inject strong power into an inclusive world economy.

As a forerunner of reform and opening-up, CMG exemplifies the spirit of the CIIE, inviting its foreign partners to attend the expo and share their services and products.

The booth where CMG hosts its foreign partners is located in the first trade service pavilion, with an area of 104 square meters. The booth is themed as “long distance separates no bosom friends” and is decorated with ocean scenes. Eight port logistics service providers from seven countries are making presentations in the booth, namely Colombo International Container Terminals, Hambantota International Port Group, Terminal Link, the Djibouti Ports & Free Zones Authority, the Port of Hamburg, the Tin Can Island Container Terminal, the Paranaguá Container Terminal and the Thessaloniki Port Authority.

The first CIIE shows China’s determination to continue reform and opening-up and its strength as a big country embracing more open markets, according to the companies, who added that the CIIE is different from other events as it provides an open market for companies cooperating worldwide.

At the event, enterprises present their qualified products, innovations, new business modes and advanced sustainable development theories to Chinese clients to support economic globalization and free trade.

Visitors to the China-Belarus Commerce & Logistics Park project displayed at the CIIE will learn that CMG played an important role in implementing the Belt and Road Initiative.

Meanwhile, the China-Belarus Industrial Park, co-built by CMG and Belarus, is a major exhibition in Belarus’s booth. The booth covers an area of 30 sq m with depictions of traditional and modern Belarus. The park is presented by various media including videos, pictures, paintings, and products to show the park’s history and policies.

The booth of Djibouti port

CMG and global companies co-organize Belt and Road Initiative logistic cooperation forum

In CMG’s early years it was China’s agent to import watercraft of different kinds and was instrumental in building a state-owned fleet.

The small import volume of 1978 had increased to 500 million yuan ($72.3 million) by 2003 and to 2.3 billion yuan by 2012.

Things had thoroughly changed by 2017 when CMG’s marine engineering equipment and food business was showing rapid development. CMG imports have gradually diversified since then, and now include ships, marine engineering equipment, food, vehicles and bulk commodities. Import volumes have reached to more than five billion yuan.

During the CIIE, CMG will sign six to eight contracts or agreements, valued at $200-300 million, with influential companies from around the world, such as China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation, Kongsberg Maritime, GE, MAN Energy Solutions and Tianjin Jingui International Trade.

In addition, the Belt and Road Initiative logistic cooperation forum was sponsored by CMG and Duisburg port on Nov 6. The forum was led by CMG and welcomed the port of Djibouti and its free trade zone, the China-Belarus Industrial Park and China-Belarus Commerce & Logistics Park.

All participants met the theme of the Belt and Road Initiative, and the forum attracted many attendees in the logistics field. The forum is expected to be productive.

Sinotrans, a subsidiary of CMG, is also going to hold a cross-border e-commerce business promotion meeting on Nov 9, which has already attracted many corporate and individual registrants.

(Executive editor: Hao Wen)