The 2000 China Fuzhou International Investment Inviting Month and the
Cross-Straits Technological Achievements Trade Fair are scheduled to start in Fuzhou,
capital of Fujian Province, on May 28. The event has already been staged on six occasions.
Investment inviting across the Taiwan Straits and the introduction of high technology
will be the two themes of the activities, according to Weng Fulin, Mayor of Fuzhou. The
trade fair will act as a bridge between inland cities and overseas businesses.
Major events include the cross-Straits technological achievements trade fair, the mayor
forum, a network project fair and publicity of a road-show tour in 100 Chinese cities.
The cross-Straits technological achievements trade fair will be the biggest
eye-catcher. Jointly hosted by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of
Information Industry, the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, the Fujian
provincial government and the Fuzhou municipal government, it will provide about 10,000
standard exhibition booths for new product exhibition and scientific research results
demonstration by 1,000 overseas multinationals, high-tech enterprises, risk investment
institutions and 200 famous colleges and universities.
The mayor forum is sponsored by the Chinese Association of Mayors and the Fuzhou
municipal government. Major activities include a theme discussion, a city investment
recommendation and introduction, investment briefing for multinationals and international
consortiums in China, investment and trade items talks and government purchasing
information releasing.
Renowned experts will be invited to give lectures on topics such as China and the WTO,
cross-Straits economic and trade cooperation, and the large-scale development of western
China. Special trade talks for sister cities and a multinationals investment seminar will
be organized to create a two-way exchange venue for various inland cities and overseas
businesses.
The network project fair will have officials from the Ministry of Information Industry
and celebrated Chinese and foreign scholars, network experts, famous domestic website
managers and designers, and risk investment operators to give their suggestions to guide
the development of the domestic network and information industry.
About 3,000 overseas enterprises will be present at the gathering and 319 projects will
invite trade bidding, involving US$10.48 billion.
Fuzhou, covering 12,000 square km with a population of 5.8 million, has been a famous
trade and commercial city. It had overseas trade relations in the Eastern Han Dynasty
(25-220) and developed into an important distribution center of bulk goods in southeast
coastal regions in the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). It became one of the 14 coastal open
cities listed by the State in 1984.
Fuzhou's economic construction and social undertakings have seen rapid growth since
reform and opening-up. Its GDP exceeded 60 billion yuan, 70 billion yuan and 80 billion
yuan in 1996, 1997 and 1998 respectively, with an annual growth rate of 20.43 percent.
Information from the National Bureau of Statistics, Fuzhou's socioeconomic strength ranked
24th among the 219 cities at or above the prefecture level nationwide in 1997.
The city's GDP in 1999 reached 94.5 billion yuan, up 13.2 percent on the previous year.
Its industrial output value registered 124.4 billion yuan, up 17.36 percent and the retail
volume of social consumption products stood at 31.5 billion yuan, up 13.8 percent, topping
the 36 commer-cial cities in the country. |
