Foreign companies that have taken part in every edition of the China International Import Expo say the annual Shanghai event has become a launchpad for products and a venue for sealing deals, according to 新华网客户端.
The ninth expo is underway, and a group of exhibitors has now appeared at all nine. Their reasons for returning, as reported by 新华网客户端, range from regulatory fast-tracking of medical devices to supermarket supply agreements and cross-border research partnerships.
Why it matters
The expo is being watched as a gauge of how foreign firms view the Chinese market at a time when investment sentiment is closely scrutinised. Companies that keep coming back offer a practical read on whether the fair delivers commercial results, not just visibility.
德勤中国主席蒋颖 told 新华网客户端 that the sustained participation and expanding local footprint of multinationals reflect both confidence in China's economic prospects and the effect of policies such as a shorter negative list for foreign investment and a better business environment. She said the ninth edition's continuity signals stability and predictability in the market, and underscores China's openness commitments.
From showcase to approval line
Medical device makers have been among the most vocal about the expo's practical value. 美敦力大中华区企业事务及传播副总裁曹珊 said the company has introduced 40 innovative medical products at the fair over the past eight years, and that policy support helped many of them move quickly through Chinese approval and onto the market, with some later manufactured locally.
She cited the company's leadless cardiac pacemaker, unveiled at the first expo, which won approval a year later and is now used in more than a thousand hospitals in China. 新华网客户端 also reported that 诺和诺德's once-weekly insulin formulation was presented at the sixth expo as clinical research literature and reached commercial launch and medical insurance listing within a year.
Consumer brands have seen a comparable effect on market recognition. 欧莱雅's 三熹玉 and 适乐肤 labels used their expo debuts to enter the Chinese market and build sustained growth, while 宜家's 马年弗斯达 collection, given its global premiere at last year's fair, sold more than 380,000 units in about five months after launch, according to the report.
Deals signed on the floor, partners found next door
For industrial and materials firms, the expo functions as an annual meeting point for customers and collaborators. 陶氏公司's booth drew steady traffic, with multiple signing ceremonies on 6 November alone involving partners including 海信集团, 传化化学 and 无锡科玛.
陶氏公司大中华区总裁黄映雪 described the expo as more than an exhibition, calling it the year's central hub linking the Chinese market, customers and the innovation ecosystem.
新华网客户端 noted that many counterparties at these signings are themselves exhibitors, turning shared display space into supply-chain cooperation. 渣打中国, another nine-time participant, signed an agreement with 中远海运散运, also in the services exhibition area, to work together on sustainable finance. German rubber and plastics equipment maker 克劳斯玛菲 deepened cooperation with 上海箱箱智能科技股份有限公司, with plans to take circular packaging solutions refined in China to overseas markets.
The report also traced a longer arc: at the sixth expo in 2023, 陶氏 signed a memorandum of cooperation worth US$300 million with 震坤行工业超市（上海）有限公司, and in the two years since, its Zhangjiagang production base has added several silicone downstream product projects.
Investment follows the exhibition floor
Several repeat exhibitors have gone beyond display and sales to build research and production capacity in China. 霍尼韦尔 signed with the 天津港保税区 for a process control innovation and research centre that is now built and operating. 拜耳 and 上海医药 jointly established what the report describes as Bayer's largest biopharmaceutical co-creation platform in Asia-Pacific, aimed at incubating cell and gene therapy innovation.
Russian exporters have also been consistent attendees. 俄罗斯出口中心 has organised Russian companies' participation for nine consecutive years, combining product displays with business matchmaking for distributors and importers. Its chief representative in China, 尤金·巴诺夫, told 新华网客户端 that successive expos have generated substantial orders for Russian firms, and said the centre would sign a cooperation agreement with 联华超市 this year to bring more Russian food products to Chinese shoppers.
Watch whether the agreements announced this week translate into the same kind of approvals, listings and factory expansions that repeat exhibitors credit to earlier editions.
