Italy seeks new opportunities at Hainan Expo

HAIKOU, May 9 (Xinhua) -- The first China International Consumer Products Expo (CICPE) is underway in Haikou, capital of south China's Hainan Province, with Italy among the key participants.

Last June, China released a master plan to build the island into a globally influential and high-level free-trade port by the middle of the century.

Slated for May 7 to 10, the CICPE has attracted 648 overseas companies and more than 1,300 brands from 69 countries and regions.

As an important country participating the Hainan expo, Italy has more than 50 brands taking part, including big names like Armani, Valentino, Sergio Rossi, ETRO, Guidi and Tod's.

Francesco Freschi, general manager of ETRO, said the world is amazed by the strong resilience and vitality of China's economy, and his company is looking forward to developing relationships and cooperating with participants at the expo.

A yacht show opened at the expo on Friday, with 107 boats put on display, covering 58 brands from 12 countries and regions, including Italy, Poland and Germany.

According to policies implemented earlier by the Hainan government, enterprises engaged in transportation and tourism can import vehicles and yachts with no tariffs.

One yacht from Italian company Azimut Yacht sold for 6.6 million yuan (about 1.03 million U.S. dollars) during the show.

Tina Woo, general manager of Moon Ocean (Hainan) Holdings, Ltd. said the purchase price of the yacht was reduced by 38 percent, with savings of nearly 2 million yuan in taxes and fees for the customer.

"The free-trade port policy will accelerate the development of the local yacht industry. More people are considering buying yachts in Hainan, and more yacht companies will register in Hainan," said Fabiomassimo Discoli, sales director of Ferretti Group Asia Pacific.

On Saturday, the first Hainan Design Week was announced, to be held in November, featuring Italy as the first partner country, with the launch ceremony taking place during the first CICPE.

Lucia Pasqualini, consul general of Italy in Guangzhou, said the CICPE is a great success and the launch of the Hainan Design Week at the expo is a significant event.

"I believe that Hainan Design Week will give Italian enterprises a platform to build a better business environment with Hainan," she added.

The design week is expected to attract more than 100,000 visitors to Haikou.

Through the Hainan Design Week, the creative design and design education exchanges between Haikou and Italy, especially Milan, will be promoted, according to the event's organizer.

Paolo Bazzoni, chairman of the Italy Chamber of Commerce said Hainan is becoming the number-one location for quality retail travel. "We are here to interact with the local government in order to be more present and to give more opportunities to our companies in Hainan," he said.

"The expo is useful to let the world understand that China is moving on. And this is an opportunity for Italy to catch up," Bazzoni added.