The value of signed export orders decreased from pre-pandemic levels at the first full return of China’s largest trade fair, but the total nevertheless managed to surpass expectations, according to the show’s organizers.
Organizers said on Friday that offline export agreements made during the Canton Fair totaled $21.69 billion, down almost a third from the $29.73 billion agreements struck at the fair’s spring session in 2019.
The first significant trade event after China unexpectedly lifted harsh COVID-19 restrictions and reopened its borders occurred when demand for products created in China was negatively impacted by dramatically rising borrowing costs in the United States and Europe.
A week prior to the exhibition, Wang Shouwen, China’s vice minister of commerce, had issued a warning that the international trade environment would be “severe and complicated this year.”
Subsequent fairs had to be postponed, relocated online, or held without attendees from abroad because of the epidemic.
The offline event attracted around 130,000 consumers, according to the organizers.
