Participation in the Dynamic Macao Business and Trade Fair in Shanghai
2009-05-11

Portuguese traditional dance

A snapshot of the fair

The Contact Point in Macao was invited to attend a fair in Shanghai from 8 to 10 of May which is organized by the Macao Convention and Exhibition Association and sponsored by the Macao Economic Department with the purpose to promote Macao in Shanghai and assist the local SMEs to explore the Shanghai markets and facilitate business cooperation with enterprises in Shanghai.

Shanghai, being the largest city and major economic hub in China, is considered as the most prosperous city in China. It has a population of over 20 million and has a long history of doing business with overseas. Its infrastructure as well as business facilities are well developed to cope with its position to be the second international financial centre after Hong Kong SAR. The city is going to hold the World Expo next year and it is speeding to renovate many tourists’ attractions, complement the transportation system and more modern office buildings are under construction.

Taking this platform to introduce our network and services, our centre together with IEEM has set up a booth in the fair together with other Macao government departments, business intermediaries and SMEs. We had received a lot of enquiries during these three-day fair regarding the interests to look for European partners or products in particular industries; the potential of using Macao as a platform for entering the European markets and studying requirements in EU etc. We were happy to be able to fulfill the interests of the Shanghai visitors of the EU markets and introduce our services. A number of contacts were left for further following up in Macao. The three-day event had attracted around 40,000 visitors in Shanghai.

It is actually the first trial for such large-scale promotional event for Macao to be held in Chinese city and the Organizing Committee is looking forward to host two more similar events in Chongqing and Beijing—two other major cities in China—for the rest of the year. This event provides direct support to Macao’s SMEs as they are able to bring their products for sale in the fair and get immediate feedback from the consumers. Moreover, they can also test the local markets and explore possible business opportunities. We are looking forward to seeing more cooperation will be developed between the Chinese and Macanese enterprises through this regular platform in China.