China's goods trade surplus reached a record $1.2 trillion last year, increasing scrutiny of its efforts to show it is buying more from the world, CNA reported on Nov. 9.
The China International Import Expo in Shanghai offers foreign companies access to Chinese customers, but the value of purchases announced there does not establish how much business ultimately takes place. Some participants also use the event to reach markets outside China.
Organizers put intended purchases at last year's expo at a record $83.5 billion. That figure covers proposed purchases, leaving open how many of the announced agreements became completed transactions after the exhibition closed.
Foreign businesses nevertheless continue to return to the event, which began in 2018 and is now in its ninth edition. More than 4,000 companies are competing for customers this year, with products filling an exhibition area equivalent to 60 football pitches.
The event's organizers said roughly half of this year's exhibitors had participated before. Those returning businesses occupy about 80% of the exhibition space, giving repeat participants a larger share of the floor than their numbers alone would indicate.
For an Argentine exhibitor who has attended since 2019, relationships built over successive visits have brought customers. He travelled 36 hours to Shanghai for this year's event and put the share of his important clients coming through the expo at 65% to 70%.
A coffee importer serving the Chinese market has attended all nine editions, although her reasons for returning have changed. Earlier visits included signing ceremonies with suppliers and customers. This year, she said, the main purpose was to meet existing contacts.
The Singapore Business Federation brought 54 companies to this year's exhibition. Seven in 10 are returning participants, the federation said. Their objectives include finding business beyond China through the international companies gathered at the event.
“They actually use this platform to find suppliers and partners that can bring them to other parts of the world,” the federation said. It cited companies that had made connections opening routes to the Middle East and Africa.
Those connections give the exhibition a role beyond its purpose of bringing foreign products into China. Companies can find partners for other markets while maintaining relationships with Chinese buyers, making attendance about more than purchases made during the show.
Higher imports also do not necessarily reduce the trade surplus, the gap between the value of goods China exports and imports. Some goods bought from abroad can support further exports, leaving the effect of new purchases on that gap unresolved.
