Canton Fair sees buyers, export growth

A foreign businessman selects commodities during the 123rd session of the China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, in Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province, April 23, 2018. The second phase of the fair will run from April 23 to 27. (Xinhua/Lu Hanxin)

China's largest trade fair concluded its 123th session Saturday in Guangdong Province, reporting more foreign buyers and deals.

The China Import and Export Fair, known as the Canton Fair, had received 203,346 buyers from 214 countries and regions by Thursday, said fair spokesman Xu Bing on Saturday.

The number of buyers, the largest in five years, represented an increase of 5.3 percent from last spring session, Xu said.

Boosted by the rise in buyers, the export turnover reached 189.2 billion yuan (30 billion U.S. dollars), up 3.1 percent year on year and also the highest among spring sessions in four years.

Machinery and electronic products contributed to 15.9 billion U.S. dollars, or 52.8 percent, of the transaction value. The light industrial products accounted for 26.6 percent.

The China Import and Export Fair, held every spring and autumn in Guangzhou, is seen as a barometer of China's exports.

Data from the trade fair indicated that China's foreign trade will continue to see stable growth, said Wang Guiqing, vice president of the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products.

Li Jinqi, president of the China Foreign Trade Center, said many Chinese businesses have improved their competitiveness and thus have the capacity to tackle challenges brought