The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), through the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM), is inviting Philippine food companies to explore the lucrative export opportunities in China by joining the country’s delegation in one of the world’s largest import-oriented expos.
DTI-CITEM is forming a delegation of 50 food exhibitors to China who will participate in business linkages and business-to-business (B2B) meetings with foreign counterparts in the second edition of the China International Import Expo (CIIE) to be held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (NECC) in Shanghai, China, this November 5-10, 2019.
“For this year’s participation, the Philippines aims to strengthen its relationship with China by once again focusing on promoting its trade and investment packages. We are doing this by continuing to emphasize to the global market that the Philippines is a viable source of quality and innovative products and services,” said DTI-CITEM Executive Director Pauline Suaco-Juan.
“We encourage food companies to join our delegation and take advantage of China’s commitment to import more high-quality agricultural products including tropical fruits from the Philippines,” Suaco-Juan said.
China is the Philippines’ top trading partner in 2018, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). International trade in goods last year with China totaled USD182.15 billion, which is higher than 10.5 percent in 2017, accounting for 16.9 percent of the country’s total trade.
China has also overtaken Japan as the biggest export market for Philippine bananas, buying more than 1.1 million metric tons in 2018.
Currently, the two nations continue to implement expanded bilateral agreements through the Six-Year Development Program for Trade and Economic Cooperation (2017-2022), which is a joint commitment to further facilitate economic and trade activities.
Suaco-Juan said the Philippine exhibitors will be located under CIIE’s Food and Agricultural Hall.
“This CIIE venue serves as a next-level promotion platform for Philippine food entrepreneurs who featured their products in CITEM’s signature event, IFEX Philippines NXTFOOD ASIA, and other overseas trade fair activities,” noted Suaco-Juan.
Last year, DTI-CITEM exhibited the products and services of 40 companies, 10 participating universities and seven partner agencies from the government and private sector under the Philippine pavilion. The country’s delegation generated a total of US$37.5 million, which was almost four times the initial sales target.
The first edition of CIIE in 2018 was attended by 151 countries and regions and brought in more than 3,600 exhibitors. The import expo was flocked by more than 400,000 domestic and 6,200 overseas buyers, which drummed up a significant amount of business transactions for all exhibitors.
The Philippine participation in the 2019 CIIE is organized by DTI-CITEM in coordination with the Export Marketing Bureau (EMB) and the Philippine Trade and Investment Centers (PTIC) in Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou.
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For those interested in joining this year’s CIIE, you may contact Ms Janine Briones, Project Officer, via email at jbriones@citem.com.ph.
