CCCI to send delegation to China trade expo

CEBU, Philippines — The Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry is sending a 50-man delegation to the China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai this November as it looks to penetrate the Chinese market.

CCCI president Antonio Chiu told The FREEMAN yesterday the delegation will be represented by various industries.

“(Our delegation is) representing a cross section of the business community of Cebu,” the top official said.

 “This is the first time China is hosting an expo with the intention of importing more goods from the world,” Chiu pointed out.

He also noted CCCI is closely coordinating with the Chinese Consulate in Cebu to arrange meeting with various Chinese business chambers.

“(We asked the consulate) to arrange meetings with our counterpart chambers from different parts of China,” the CCCI official said.

“This is our opportunity to meet with business people who are interested to buy more products from the Philippines and Cebu in particular,” Chiu said.

China, with 1.42 billion people as of 2018 and being the world’s second biggest economy, second largest importer and consumer globally, offers so much trade opportunities for the Philippines as its key trade partner.

China is now much willing to buy more from the Philippines as relations between the Philippines and China have improved Under President Duterte.

The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China, had noted that China really has a huge market.

The first CIIE is China’s firm support to trade liberalization and open its market to the world.

China, including Hong Kong, is among the Philippines’ key trading partners in exports and imports.

In 2017, Philippines’ trade with China grew 13.79 percent, with 7.83 percent and 20.05 percent growth in exports and imports, respectively.

The Philippines total merchandise trade with China continues to rise.

According to the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Beijing, China’s consumer market demands for industrial goods, and consumer goods and services amid its growing middle class market.

Food products and design-driven products have so much opportunities to enter the Chinese market.

These include fruits, processed food, coconut oil, virgin coconut oil, high-value seafood, and coconut water, among others.

Cebu can also take advantage of exporting design-driven products such as furniture, home furnishing and decors, and fashion accessories, among others.