Weifang industry expo attracts scores of Japanese, South Korean businesses

The ongoing China-Japan-South Korea Industry Expo in Weifang, Shangdong province, has attracted more than 300 businesses from Japan and South Korea.

The expo features technologies and products in the fields of modern manufacturing, agriculture and service industries. Participants from the Japan and South Korea account for 57 percent of the enterprises at the expo, which continues through Friday, the government said.

The expo creates a good platform to develop cross-country regional economic cooperation, Mayor Liu Shuguang said.

"It will help boost collaboration in the fields of trade, investment, technology, culture and tourism among the three countries," Liu said.

There has been rapid development in cooperation between East Asian countries in recent years, with China signing a bilateral free trade agreement in June with South Korea.

Under the deal, China will remove tariffs on 91 percent of all products imported from South Korea within the next 20 years. South Korea will eliminate tariffs on 92 percent of all goods imported from China.

Weifang covers 16,100 square kilometers and has a population of 9.25 million. To date, 245 enterprises from Japan and South Korea have built facilities in Weifang.