Autumn trade fairs open in Hong Kong to boost business deals

HONG KONG, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Seven autumn trade fairs, organized by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), opened here Wednesday, showcasing a range of cutting-edge tech products, solutions, services and intelligence.

The seven fairs, held in the form of "physical + online", featured more than 1,700 exhibitors from 18 countries and regions. The physical fairs will run until Oct. 30 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center and the online fairs will run until Nov. 6.

Under the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries and regions have imposed travel restrictions and the exhibition industry has been inevitably affected. To help small and medium-sized enterprises capture new opportunities, the HKTDC brought together its seven autumn trade fairs into a single "physical + online" platform this year.

The fairs showcased products and services presented by different industries including electronics, information technology, healthcare and lighting.

Benjamin Chau, Deputy Executive Director of the HKTDC, said earlier that given October was traditionally the peak sourcing season, the adoption of a hybrid exhibition format would enable buyers and suppliers to continue their meetings and seize business opportunities in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A booth set up by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government showcased a string of technology solutions that facilitate smart city development and enhance public services.

Many products in the fairs were related to the theme of anti-epidemic. A local start-up company that mainly studied the technology of attaching photocatalyst materials to different products joined the exhibition for the first time. They hoped to promote their new household products including lighting and place mat through the trade show.

For the online fairs, the HKTDC has invited overseas buyers to conduct business discussions with exhibitors via video conferencing. The online fairs also featured an artificial intelligence-powered online business matching platform to bring exhibitors together with potential buyers.

According to the HKSAR government statistics, Hong Kong's total exports were valued at 3,141.3 billion HK dollars (about 403.86 billion U.S. dollars) from January to August this year, representing year-on-year growth of 29 percent.

The HKTDC said the figure demonstrated how global demand has rebounded along with a stronger industry need for sourcing new products. (1 U.S. dollar equals 7.77 HK dollars)