China’s Import Expo Shows How Global Trade Can Work for Everyone

In the latest show of China’s profound business offerings to countries worldwide, the eighth China International Import Expo (CIIE) occupies center stage. The event brought together over 4,100 foreign exhibitors from dozens of countries, regions and global organizations.

The global merits of the expo are difficult to overstate: China has a proven record of working with a wide range of countries, including many across Africa, to help them benefit from its vast market access. As this year’s CIIE introduces fresh themes spanning the silver economy, sports economy and automotive tourism, there is ample latitude for participating entities to benefit from China’s exhibition of new technologies and services.

First, the considerable participation from China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) partners highlights the CIIE’s international importance. China’s growing demand for imports gives economies at every stage of development a valuable opportunity to showcase their most promising ventures and service offerings.

This is particularly significant because China is rapidly opening its market to the world. China’s opening-up policy has complemented its broader ambitions of high-quality development, which includes a demonstrated commitment to sharing the benefits of people-centric development with the outside world. The eighth CIIE builds on a strong record of bringing unique international products to China and is expected to drive further innovation.

This year’s expo features a broad range of technological offerings, with future industries such as the low-altitude economy and sophisticated robotics taking center stage. For a world rapidly embracing the dividends of artificial intelligence, the expo’s emphasis on multi-purpose technology use is a major advantage for exhibitors.

Many African countries, and even some in the Middle East, have struggled to keep up with the rapid adoption of new technologies. This makes the CIIE an important platform for building an international ecosystem of product exchange, one that brings together ventures from over 120 BRI countries.

The Belt and Road’s track record of promoting green energy projects, increasing low-carbon transition capacity in developing countries, and offering flexible financing is further strengthened by the presence of diverse, multi-sector exhibitors at the CIIE.

The expo manifests the potential of Chinese-origin innovation breakthroughs to gain international traction, including through agreements reached at the expo. At the same time, there is ample scope for cutting-edge international technologies to gain deeper penetration into China’s market.

The country’s medical device market alone is slated to expand beyond the 1.8 trillion yuan ($253 billion) mark by 2035. This market is simply a microcosm of the broader growth sectors that encapsulate China’s surging high-tech industry, serving as a magnet to attract early-stage start-ups and promising ventures from a host of countries.

Building on previous years, China has expanded its special zone for Africa’s product offerings at the CIIE. This gives exhibitors from the continent even more opportunity to strengthen their presence at the expo – clear proof that Beijing is committed to deepening access for African businesses. The more than two-thirds increase in participating African ventures this year underscores that progress.

As Gavran Igor, an economy specialist from Bosnia and Herzegovina recently pointed out, “without collaborating with China, you can’t really say that you are collaborating with the economy in the world because the international economy without China doesn’t exist.” Beijing’s commitment to inviting high-level leaders from countries such as Nigeria, Georgia and Serbia shows it is keen to build a truly global economy, with a strong focus on international consumption and showcasing products.

The range of economic sectors at the heart of CIIE also points to a leap in future cooperation. Securing new deals is cause for considerable optimism, given the expo’s strong track record of securing billions in agreements in past years.

This track record is a model for growth and expanded global trade ties. At the core of credible, high-growth, long-term investment connections is the expo’s proven ability to bring nations, their representatives, top companies, and multi-sector ventures together under a shared cooperation umbrella. The eighth CIIE, with its record-setting arrangements, is a step in that direction and should be seen as a key measure for fostering trust among international investors.

It is also a valuable initiative, given that a range of countries are eager to boost their exports to China and, in turn, benefit from Beijing’s substantial consumption and import appetite.

Confining the expo’s wide-ranging service offerings to a single region would have undercut the appeal of the initiative. This is precisely why the eighth CIIE serves as a lesson in market expansion, building on Beijing’s proven record of trade and economic outreach with industries, manufacturers, and corporate entities from Europe to Africa.

China’s policy commitment is evident in its ability to provide 430,000 square meters of exhibition space to attendees and bring together more than 280 Fortune Global 500 companies under a single roof. By bringing thousands of batches of overseas exhibits into its market in previous years, Beijing is sending a powerful signal about the country’s focus on import-led growth.

This year’s emphasis on transforming traditional industries through advanced technology and new innovation strategies generates a healthy space to improve market access. It also epitomizes the level of research and development evident in China.

For instance, China’s newly adopted recommendations on formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) prioritizes increased R&D spending, showing a clear push to boost external offerings, a trend that’s on display at CIIE with innovative AI products and industry-ready solutions. Siemens’ exhibition of AI products and the latest robotic breakthroughs from France highlight the global technological appeal of the expo.

“Our participation at the CIIE is linked to our strategic export-related objective of developing new and existing South African exporters’ capabilities to grow exports globally by providing appropriate information, financial support for participation and practical assistance to sustain organic growth in traditional markets and to penetrate new high-growth markets,” remarked Parks Tau, South Africa’s minister of trade, industry and competition, recently.

These wide-ranging merits, CIIE’s global trade exchange offerings, and increased international participation collectively reinforce the platform’s value as a growth engine for businesses, both within and beyond China.

Hannan Hussain is co-founder and senior expert at Initiate Futures, an Islamabad-based policy think tank.