China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, is the window, epitome and symbol of China's opening up and an important platform for international trade cooperation. It plays a key role in advancing the development of China’s foreign trade and the economic and trade exchanges between China and the rest of the world. It is renowned as China’s No. 1 Fair, and the propeller and barometer of China’s foreign trade.

The Canton Fair is co-hosted by the Ministry of Commerce of PRC and the People’s Government of Guangdong Province and organized by China Foreign Trade Centre. Since its establishment in 1957, the Canton Fair has been held every spring and autumn in Guangzhou, China, for 139 sessions. It is a comprehensive international trading event with the longest history, the largest scale, the most complete exhibit variety, the largest buyer attendance, the most diverse buyer origin, the greatest business turnover and best reputation in China.

The 139th Canton Fair attracted 314,000overseas buyers from 220 countries and regionsto attend the Fair onsite.

The 140th Canton Fair is scheduled to open on October 15, with a total exhibition area of 1.55 million square meters. The coming session will continue to pursueinnovative, sustainable and intelligent development, and provide global buyers with a one-stop trading platform featuring complete exhibit variety, quality products with competitive price, and convenient, efficient and reliable services. Highlights of the 140th session are as follows.

First, excellent exhibition structure. Phase 1 focuses on “advanced manufacturing”. In addition to conventional industries such as Machinery, Hardware, Tools, and Light & Electrical, a large number of cutting-edge technologies and intelligent products will be showcased in sections such as Electronics & Appliance, New Energy Vehicles and Smart Mobility, Industrial Automation and Intelligent Manufacturing, New Energy Resources，and the Service Robots Zone will be maintained.Phase 2 is marked by “quality home life”. Building and Furniture, Housewares, and Gifts & Decorations categories register an exhibition area of over 130,000 square meters respectively, andthe Fashion Jewelry Zone will continue to be featured. Under the theme of “better life”, Phase 3 will exhibit products from sectors of Health and Recreation, Toys & Children Baby and Maternity, and Fashion to meet the sourcing demand for new consumption. Phase 3 also continues to feature the Intelligent Healthcare Zone, highlighting innovative solutions in diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation care, and health management.

Second, high quality exhibitors. Over30,000 enterprises are expected to participate in the Fair, including about 2,800 Canton Fair brand exhibitors that have stood out through rigorous evaluation and demonstrated remarkable innovation capabilities. Around one third of all exhibitors are high-quality companies that are national high-techenterprises, single champions, and specialized and sophisticated small and medium enterprises. There are also a large number of featured enterprises recommended by provinces and municipalities.

Third, abundant innovative products. Various innovative products will be unveiled. Products in Phase 1 will highlight new quality productive forces. The latest achievements in fields such as new energy resources, intelligent connected vehicles, intelligent manufacturing and drones will be presented. Humanoid robots, robotic dogs, robotic dexterous hands, companion robots, coffee robots, inspection robots, exoskeletons, delivery robots, cleaning robots, etc. will be exhibited at the Service RobotsZone.Smart watches, VR glasses, AI translation devices and other high-end and intelligent productswill be showcased in the Smart Wearables Zone.Products in Phase 2 and 3 will feature innovative design, green and low-carbon products, as well as personalization and customization. The Fashion Jewelry Zone will display 3 types of products: natural jewelry and jade ornaments, artificial / synthetic jewelry, precious metal ornaments. Six types of products will be showcased at the Intelligent Healthcare Zone: intelligent diagnostic and medical equipment, medical robots, smart monitoring, smart wearables, intelligent physical therapy, and smart rehabilitation.

Fourth, diverse trade services.Focusing on the entire lifecycle of business, the Trade Service Zone is established to provide services such as R&D and design, international logistics, and financial insurance.“Trade Bridge-China Industrial Sourcing Trip”events will be staged to bring buyers to industrial bases and key industrial parks for direct buyer-manufacturer matchmaking. Targeting the needs of overseas buyers and the key exhibition sections,livestreamed exhibition tours and industry roundtables will be hosted and aired on the Fair’s official website and social media pages. High-quality themed forums will address industry highlights, providing insights into frontier trends and market risk prevention. Diverse design activities will be held with the newly renovated Canton Fair Design Award (CF Award) showroom, while the Product Design & Trade Promotion Center (PDC) will showcase design services and business practices, helping buyers gather innovative resources and grasp market opportunities. New Collection events will be broadcast simultaneously on the Canton Fair official website and APP, providing diverse and convenient product selection for efficient and hassle-free sourcing.

Fifth, improved convenience of attending the Canton Fair. To facilitate the attendance of global buyers, the Fair has opened year-round pre-registration and will continue to provide badge application at alternative registration offices prior to the Fair. New overseas buyers can finish pre-registration on Canton Fair official website and apply for badges for free at alternative buyer registration offices such as Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, Guangzhou South Railway Station, Pazhou Ferry Terminal, designated hotels in Guangzhou and Canton Fair Hong Kong Representative Office. The Fair also advances the application of real-time navigation technology, deploying positioning systems throughout the complex to improve the navigation experience for exhibitors and buyers.To provide convenient and efficient online services, the functions of the Canton Fair official website and Canton Fair APP will be optimized, and the ASKME AI Agent will be enhanced to facilitate buyers in searching for exhibitors and products online, and to enable instantcommunication with exhibitors.

The Canton Fair has establisheda comprehensive chain of intellectual property protection measures, which covers proactive pre-exhibition screening, rapid in-exhibition handling, and post-exhibition follow-up. It encourages exhibitors to showcase new products and technologies, providing special support for the debut of exhibits for whose patents or trademarks have not yet been applied for in China, which will help buyers gain priority access to cutting-edge original scientific and technological achievements and seize market opportunities.

Please visit the official Canton Fair website(https://www.cantonfair.org.cn) for more information, or scan the QR code below to download the Canton Fair app.