136th Canton Fair features digital, green future of global trade

The 136th China Import and Export Fair, popularly known as the Canton Fair, is set to open on Tuesday in Guangzhou, the provincial capital of Guangdong in the south, featuring the digital and green future of global trade.

As of last Friday, 138,000 overseas buyers from 209 countries and regions had pre-registered for the 136th Canton Fair, which will take place in three phases through Nov. 4.

And 223 of the world's top 250 global retailers are expected to attend, up 24 percent from the previous edition.

Nearly 4,600 companies from home and abroad will hold exhibitions for the first time, and 8,000 leading Chinese startups and major players in the domestic high-tech and manufacturing sectors will attend.

This year's exhibition will feature 74,000 booths across 55 zones covering a total area of 1.55 million square meters.

"The overseas buyers have traveled across oceans and journeyed thousands of miles to the Canton Fair, which reflects the global business community's trust in Chinese products and their confidence in the Chinese economy," said Chu Shijia, the Canton Fair's deputy director and secretary general, at a press conference in Beijing on Oct. 10.

As many as 390,000 digital and smart products and 1.04 million green and low-carbon ones, a surge of 300 percent and 130 percent from the 135th fair, respectively, will be presented at the fair.

For the first time, the fair will feature hydrogen energy products in its new energy section and dedicate a new section to energy storage solutions, with the expected attendance of 110 enterprises in the related sector.

According to Chu, Chinese products and brands will be in the limelight at this fair.

"At the Canton Fair, Chinese products and brands have reached a new level of high-quality development. Amid the wide array of fine products to be displayed at this fair, Chinese products stand out for their high quality and cost-effectiveness as well as trendiness and high level of safety, indicating that China has the confidence and capability to provide the world with more and better products made and created in China," he said in an interview with China Central Television (CCTV) after the press conference.

Launched in 1957 and held twice yearly, the Canton Fair is considered a major gauge of China's foreign trade.

136th Canton Fair features digital, green future of global trade

China has built and upgraded nearly 100,000 kilometers of roads across Africa as part of the Belt and Road Initiative, aiming to boost industrial and infrastructure development, as well as trade on the continent.

In Uganda, the 217.9-million-U.S.-dollar Masindi-Park Junction and Tangi Junction-Paraa-Buliisa road project serves as a vital link for both commerce and conservation in the country.

Funded by the China Export-Import Bank and built by China Communications Construction Company, the project is not just a ribbon of asphalt, but a lifeline connecting communities and catalyzing growth.

The road winds through the vast Murchison Falls National Park, reducing travel time and improving the tourist experience.

And the 51-kilometer Kampala Entebbe Expressway in the country, financed and constructed by China, reduces the travel time from Kampala to Entebbe airport to 30 minutes from 120 minutes before.

In Tanzania, the Chinese-built state-of-the-art Kijazi Interchange in Dar es Salaam is the biggest project of its kind in the country.

It consists of a three-level interchange with the maximum height of 17.5 meters and service roads.

The interchange significantly reduces traffic jams in the commercial capital, making heavy traffic jams lasting for hours at the busy Ubungo junction history.

The Keffi Road project in Nigeria, contracted by the China Harbor Engineering Company, was completed in 2023.

The project comprises the construction of the Abuja-Keffi expressway and dualization of Keffi-Akwanga-Lafia-Makurdi road in central Nigeria, facilitating local economic activities along with job opportunities and road-construction expertise.

The 27.1-kilometer Nairobi Expressway, built by a Chinese firm, is providing a faster route for motorists heading to and from the central business district, the city's industrial area and the main international airport.

It is part of a broader investment in Kenya's transport infrastructure, aimed at improving road connectivity and supporting the country's economic growth.

Since its launch, the toll road has significantly cut travel time between Nairobi's southern areas, home to the main airport, and the upscale Westlands suburb, from two hours during peak times to just 20 minutes.

China builds, upgrades nearly 100,000 kilometers of roads across Africa