(The 9th CIIE) The reality of Asia-Pacific cooperation at the CIIE: Openness and win-win activate regional momentum

China News Service, Shanghai, November 9. Title: The reality of Asia-Pacific cooperation at the China International Import Expo: openness and win-win activate regional momentum

China News Service reporter Li Jiajia

At the 9th China International Import Expo being held here, Lu Shengye, general manager of Silver Fern Farm Asia, stood on the signing stage with Meituan Xiaoxiang Supermarket. The goal set by both parties for 2027 is to achieve a total merchandise transaction volume of 200 million yuan.

The New Zealand red meat producer has participated in the show for the ninth consecutive year and this year brought New Zealand grass-fed chilled lamb. The brand is relying on the "29-minute home" instant retail channel to bring more high-quality grass-fed beef and mutton from the exhibition stand freezer to the dining tables of Chinese consumers.

Silver Fern Farm is not alone. When APEC's "Year of China" in 2026 proposed three priority areas of "openness, innovation, and cooperation" and emphasized the promotion of trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, the CIIE happened to provide an excellent window.

At this CIIE, the highlights of cooperation between APEC economies are no longer limited to the increase in bilateral trade, but also highlight the deep trend of linkage in the Asia-Pacific region.

The Singapore pavilion brings 54 companies to the exhibition this year, 19 of which are making their debut. As one of the important supporting activities during the CIIE, the Singapore-China Economic, Trade and Investment Forum displayed 11 newly signed cooperation memorandums with a total contract value of approximately SGD 15.1 million (approximately 78.6 million yuan), demonstrating the vitality and resilience of economic and trade cooperation between the two countries.

Li Jianhui, Chairman of the Singapore Federation of Industry and Commerce, said: "China has always been an important market that Singaporean companies attach great importance to. I hope that when we talk about 'Singapore-China Cooperation' in the future, it will not only be Singaporean companies entering China and Chinese companies entering Singapore, but also Singaporean and Chinese companies taking advantage of each other's advantages to jointly explore ASEAN and the broader international market."

Canada served as the guest country of honor at the CIIE for the second time this year. A total of more than 120 Canadian companies participated in the exhibition, setting a new high in the scale of participation in previous exhibitions. Liu Wei, general manager of Champion Pet Food China, defined the CIIE as “an important action to deepen local cooperation and fulfill long-term commitments.” Arc'teryx, which is participating in the exhibition for the first time, regards this appearance as "a natural step that has been a natural step in its development in the Chinese market for nearly 20 years", and hopes to promote outdoor cultural exchanges between China and Canada and participate in the cooperative development of the outdoor industries of the two countries.

Having appeared at the CIIE for seven consecutive years, South Korea’s Samyang Foods has gradually moved from “exhibitor” to “investor”. During this CIIE, it started the countdown to the production of its Jiaxing factory in China. Peng Zhixin, general manager of Samyang Food China Business Center, said that over the past seven years, Samyang's layout in China has extended from product display to local R&D, channel construction and Jiaxing factory investment. "The Chinese market has rich channels, extremely diverse consumers, large regional taste differences, and frequent new ideas, so it also plays an important role in 'reverse export'."

American apparel group PVH has focused its cooperation on three lines: capital increase, talent cultivation and industrial empowerment. During the CIIE, PVH announced an investment of nearly RMB 100 million in its China headquarters, launched the "Educating the Future" talent project, and launched the "Chuxiong Yi Embroidery Sustainable Development Empowerment Project."

Queensland, Australia, organized 55 companies and more than 115 representatives to participate in the exhibition, making it the largest trade delegation sent overseas in the history of the state. In 2025, Queensland's participation in the CIIE has achieved fruitful results, with exhibitors achieving export results of more than 130 million Australian dollars. This year, a number of Queensland companies will also showcase their products through live broadcasts to promote to millions of potential Chinese consumers.

Ros Bates, Queensland Minister of Finance, Trade, Employment and Training, said: "Queensland has clarified its key development direction in the Chinese market, which is to expand China's second, third and fourth tier markets, and make in-depth arrangements in the rapidly developing e-commerce field. These are important opportunities that the CIIE can open the door to Queensland enterprises."

The diverse and pragmatic exhibition practices illustrate the trade and investment liberalization and facilitation discussed under the APEC framework. The narratives of "exhibits turning into commodities, exhibitors turning into investors" accumulated at the CIIE all seem to be saying the same thing: the value of openness will ultimately be realized by the goods on the shelves and the orders in the account.