Canton Fair signs up partners in e-commerce

Organizers of the China Import and Export Fair, the country's largest twice-a-year trade event and a barometer of its exports, signed agreements with 12 domestic trade delegations on Wednesday to facilitate the development of its e-commerce services.

Wang Zhiping, director of the China Foreign Trade Center, said that the alliances will help Chinese exporters boost their efficiency by reducing costs.

"We will speed up efforts to build a one-stop service in this e-commerce platform, covering online inquiries, payments, logistics, customs clearance, insurance and financing for Chinese exporters," said Wang.

Wang made the remarks during a ceremony on Wednesday in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, that featured the signing of agreements with major Chinese trade delegations. These groups are from the provinces of Guangdong, Fujian and Hunan and the cities of Chongqing, Guangzhou, Qingdao, Ningbo, Xiamen, Wuxi, Wuhan, Xi'an and Zhuhai.

"The alliances are of great importance in coping with the slowdown of China's trade and supporting a new growth model for the country's economy," Wang said.

The fair's organizers will help Chinese companies participate in overseas industry fairs to promote their products and invite overseas counterparts to invest in these provinces and cities.

"We are also building an affiliated e-commerce platform to target domestic trade, which means that the fair's e-commerce service will expand business opportunities in the overseas and domestic markets for Chinese manufacturers," Wang said.

To get around the limits of time and space that previously affected the event, which is widely known as the Canton Fair, an e-commerce platform called e-cantonfair.com was launched during the spring session this year.