Canton Fair facilitates int'l trade by matching exhibitors with buyers

The 138th China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, has attracted an increasing number of exhibitors to showcase their latest innovations, reaffirming its role as a vital platform for international trade matchmaking.

The fair, which opened in Guangzhou of south China's Guangdong Province on Wednesday, is divided into three phases, with each phase lasting for five days.

Themed on advanced manufacturing, the first phase running from Oct 15 to 19 highlights products, such as electronics and home appliances, industrial manufacturing, lighting and electrical products, hardware tools, and vehicles and two-wheelers.

It features 19 exhibition zones and a dedicated service robot area. Spanning 520,000 square meters with 25,000 booths, the phase hosts approximately 12,000 participating companies.

This year, Liu Bo, a Chinese exhibitor with three decades of experience in the home appliance sector, made his debut at the fair, aiming to expand business in global market.

"The gas stove is specifically developed for markets in Europe, South America, and Belt and Road Initiative partner countries. We hope to achieve good sales at the Canton Fair," said Liu.

With the enthusiastic participation of Chinese enterprises and overseas buyers, the importance of the Canton Fair in facilitating cross-border trade has become increasingly prominent.

"We have found that China is developing very fast, especially in technology. Every time I visit the Canton Fair, I see new products and technological advancements, and the progress is very fast," said Ilirjan Koxhioni, a purchaser from Albania.

He said that his company has not only visited suppliers on site, but also planned to increase the purchase volume of Chinese technological products.

According to the organizer, about 247,000 purchasers from 218 countries and regions have pre-registered for this fair, up 10 percent from the previous edition. Notably, the number of buyers from the European Union, the United States, and countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative has shown significant growth.

Canton Fair facilitates int'l trade by matching exhibitors with buyers

Canton Fair facilitates int'l trade by matching exhibitors with buyers

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) called for maximum military restraint and full adherence to the localized ceasefire on Friday, after Russian personnel were reportedly injured near the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (NPP).

The IAEA said it has been informed that some Russian military personnel were injured during Friday's de-mining phase of the agreed localized ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine.

Earlier on Friday, the IAEA announced the start of a localized ceasefire it brokered on the front line near the Zaporizhzhia NPP, enabling repairs to the plant's crucial power line.

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said the restoration of the off-site power line would be an important and positive step for nuclear safety, which is in everybody's vital interest.

"Today, we have been able to agree on the sixth ceasefire, localized ceasefire brokered by us, the IAEA, with Ukraine and the Russian Federation. This will allow experts and technicians from both sides to start very crucial repairs of the Dniprovska line. It's the 750-kilowatt line, the main line that is still standing there," Grossi noted.

The line has been disconnected for more than two months. The Zaporizhzhia NPP had to rely on emergency diesel generators for the electricity it needed to cool its six shutdown reactors in the event of a power outage during military conflicts.

The Zaporizhzhia plant, one of Europe's largest nuclear power facilities, has been under Russian control since March 2022.

Alexey Likhachev, director general of Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom, reported Ukrainian drone strikes on the Zaporizhzhia NPP on Friday afternoon. "Three of our engineers were injured, two of them are in serious condition," Likhachev was quoted as saying by Russian news agency Interfax.

According to the IAEA, the incident is currently being investigated, and the Ukrainian side said it remains committed to the ceasefire.

IAEA chief calls for restraint, adherence to ceasefire near Zaporizhzhia