China's first consumer products expo a magnet for international brands

The first China International Consumer Products Expo scheduled for May 7 to 10 in Haikou, capital of south China's Hainan Province, will be a magnet for international brands, according to the organizers on Thursday.

Co-hosted by the Ministry of Commerce and the Hainan provincial government, the expo has registered 2,628 consumer brands, including 1,365 international brands from 69 countries and regions.

Covering 80,000 square meters, including 60,000 square meters of international exhibition space featuring products including jewelry, food and health products from leading brands, the expo is expected to attract more than 30,000 buyers and over 200,000 visitors.

To cater to the demand for high-end leisure products among the country's new rich, the city of Haikou will hold a yacht show during the event, which will feature 107 yachts of 58 brands from 12 countries and regions.

Switzerland, as the guest of honor for the expo, has planned to launch 81 activities of consumer product debuts releasing new products.

The event will be the first international expo to be held in Hainan since China released a master plan in June 2020 to build the island province into a globally influential and high-level free trade port by the middle of the century.

It is also the first-ever expo focused on consumer products organized by the world's second-largest economy. It is expected to showcase the country's consumption power, facilitate the construction of the free trade port, and contribute to the new development paradigm of dual circulation.

Han Shengjian, director of the Hainan International Economic Development Bureau, said that the expo serves as a global platform for displaying and trading fine consumer products.

The expo will be more focused on product displaying and brand promotion than on on-site sales, according to the organizers.

"Most exhibitors hope to get access to more buyers and look for more business cooperation opportunities through the expo instead of on-site retails," Han said.