The sixth edition of the Chinese Commodities Fair Sharjah (CCFS) opened today (November 18) at Expo Centre Sharjah.

The event was inuagurated by Sheikh Abdullah Bin Salem Al Qassimi, chairman, Diwan Al Amiri  - Sharjah, and Gao Yusheng, ambassador of the People's Republic of China in UAE.

The show is being held under the patronage of Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Bin Sultan Al Qassimi, Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Sharjah.

It is a five-day event jointly sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce Trade of the People's Republic of China, the China Chamber for the Promotion of International, and the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and organised by Chinamex and Expo Centre Sharjah.

'The UAE and China enjoy very strong economic ties,' said Ahmed Mohammed Al Midfa, chairman of the SCCI, after the opening ceremony.

'The CCFS is a manifestation of the booming relations between the UAE and China. The event has successfully infused impetus in the bilateral ties between the two countries and we believe that it has the potential to help further strengthen cooperation, especially in the arena of trade,' he added.

Two-way trade between the UAE and China surged 31.5 per cent to $14.2 billion in 2006 to position the country as the largest trading partner of China in the GCC.

It is expected that Sino-UAE trade will reach $100 billion by 2015.

Trade between China and the GCC region as a whole has also been booming. It soared 46 per cent from 2003 to $24 billion in 2004, then by 32 per cent to $32 billion in 2005 and finally by 34 per cent to over $40 billion in 2006.

This year’s CCFS is hosting over 400 well-known companies from more than 30 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities of China. 

Among the industries that are being represented at the exhibition are hardware and building materials, special vehicles, agri-food products, engineering machine and parts, and light industries. – TradeArabia News Service