The Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) will be spearheading the participation of 58 Malaysian companies at the 17th China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO) 2020 from 27 – 30 November 2020. CAEXPO returns this year in a hybrid model for the first time, offering both physically, at the Nanning International Convention & Exhibition Centre (NICEC) and also virtually. With the theme “Jointly Building the BRI, Invigorating Digital Economy”, this fair is aimed to deepen the digital Economic Cooperation between China and ASEAN via CAEXPO platform.
26 Malaysian companies will take part in the physical trade fair including four (4) Government agencies namely Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA), Tourism Malaysia (TM), Education Malaysia (EM) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industries (MAFI). The remaining Malaysian participants will appear in the virtual platform including companies led by the Department of Industrial Development and Research Sabah (DIDR) and East Coast Economic Region Development Council (ECERDC). The sectors promoted in CAEXPO are Food and Beverages, Health and Wellness, Lifestyle and Services.
According to MATRADE’s Chief Executive Officer, Dato’ Wan Latiff Wan Musa, Malaysia has participated in the CAEXPO for the past 16 years to facilitate Small and Medium Enterprises’ (SMEs) access into China as well as the ASEAN market. “The hybrid model initiative is aimed to assist the Malaysian companies to continue leveraging on CAEXPO to access the huge China and ASEAN markets. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic where international travels are restricted, MATRADE continues to provide platform for Malaysian exporters to stay connected with foreign buyers”.
“We are glad that CAEXPO is organised as scheduled although in a hybrid format, as we regard it an important avenue for the promotion of Malaysian products and services in China. It would be imperative to sustain the momentum and to do business differently by utilizing the digital platform. I am confident Malaysian companies will do well this year given that products from Malaysia have been widely accepted at this event all this while” added Dato’ Wan Latiff.
Last year, 167 Malaysian companies took part in CAEXPO, generating total sales of RM677.80 million. “CAEXPO is a good platform to promote the brand awareness and it enables the companies to have further understanding on the consumer market,” said Mr Martin Ang, the Director of Sales & Marketing of Julies’s Manufacturing Sdn Bhd.
Meanwhile, Ms Tung See Yue, Senior International Business Executive, Boh Plantations Sdn Bhd said that CAEXPO is a very interesting platform which combined a B2B and B2C elements. The company managed to increase its sales in the online stores after exhibiting in CAEXPO. She also thanked MATRADE for arranging quality B2B business meetings during the exhibition.
China has been Malaysia’s largest trading partner for more than ten (10) consecutive years. Last year, China was also Malaysia’s largest export destination and import source. In 2019, Malaysia’s total trade with China stood at RM315.20 billion with Malaysia’s export to China and import from China recorded a total of RM139.61 billion and RM175.59 billion, respectively.
