It is a major event with a pioneering character: From 5 to 10 November, China hosts the first China International Import Expo (CIIE) in the eastern Chinese economic metropolis of Shanghai.

This is not only the first time that the People's Republic of China has organized an international exhibition of this kind which exclusively presents foreign imported goods, but also the world's first expo of this kind at state level.


Peter Tichauer (Photo: Elke Schöps)

The interest level is correspondingly high: More than 2800 companies from over 130 countries and regions are taking part in the event, and 12 countries have set up their own national pavilions, including the UK and Germany.

Parallel to the exhibitions, the top-class Hongqiao International Trade and Economic Forum will take place, where experts from all over the world discuss ways and opportunities for further opening-up, and innovation in global trade and worldwide investments.

The new Import Expo is seen as an important signal of China‘s further opening-up its domestic market.

What does China's commitment to more market opening mean for foreign companies? How has their situation changed over the years? In which specific areas do opportunities lie in the coming years, and in which lie challenges?

We spoke with the German expert on China, Peter Tichauer, who for many years held the position of editor-in-chief of the business magazine China Contact and since March 2018 heads the press and PR department of Sino-German Ecopark in Qingdao in addition to serving as editor-in-chief of the newly founded magazine China Insight.

With regard to the changes over the past decades, he says: "In the early years of the reform and opening-up policy, capital assets were of particular interest for China as imports, but today the importance of consumer goods and food and beverages grows. This can be explained above all by the fact that the purchasing power of Chinese consumers has risen sharply over the years.”

In the coming years, Tichauer sees opportunities for foreign companies in the areas of high-quality consumer goods, environmentally friendly equipment for industry and households, and "intelligent" (smart) products of all kinds.

But there are still a few hurdles to be overcome in economic cooperation. "Food, for example, must be certified before it reaches Chinese shops. And some of these certification regulations are quite complicated for foreign companies and do not comply with European regulations," says Tichauer. (does this mean Chinese and European countries have different regulation for food standard? Need to be clarified) (NOTE: It means that the regulations are different from the already very strict European regulations, and add extra steps for the manufacturers to comply with Chinese regulations in addition to the European ones)

This still poses a challenge for foreign food producers, says Tichauer. "It is certainly necessary to step up efforts towards harmonization of these regulations, which of course does not mean that standards should be defined by the West alone.”

A further challenge which remains for many foreign companies is to find reliable sales partners and be listed in China’s retail market, says Tichauer.

With these and other issues, the Sino-German Ecopark Qingdao as a German-Chinese platform assists German companies in their move to China and the development of the local business.

"The Ecopark Qingdao aims to establish a model for sustainable and environmentally friendly development through German-Chinese cooperation. We are not only talking about industrial settlements here. Rather, an environmentally friendly urban center of the future is being created here. By cooperating and using their products, German environmental companies can demonstrate their reliability and in this way open up the Chinese market.”

The CIIE, which will take place annually from this year onwards, should serve as an important platform for cooperation in the future.

"Especially in view of the recent trade conflicts, it is important to further strengthen imports," says Tichauer. But this is not the only reason for the importance of the expo. According to the Tichauer, Chinese consumers wanted to buy high-quality products, while Chinese companies strive for modernization. For both, import plays a crucial role.

The trade conflict with the USA will ultimately also provide China with an impetus to drive its own innovation even further and strengthen domestic consumption. "In this respect, the new Import Expo comes at just the right time," says the German China expert. ”It helps to further open up the market in the sense that suppliers have the opportunity to open up new sales channels.”

So there is much to suggest that the new exhibition will establish itself as an important new platform in the international trade fair calendar. According to media reports, multitudes of the attending companies have already confirmed their participation for the coming year even before the event is over.