Sichuan Economy and Trade Trends Monthly, September 2015

Published by CCPIT Sichuan Council

Table of Contents

Macro Economy

Sichuan Attempting to Break Through the Double RMB 100 Bln Targets

Last year, Sichuan Province achieved a total income through tourism contracting of RMB 88 billion with a year-on-year growth of 94.6%.

Tourism+Capital became an outstanding feature of the current Sichuan tourism industry and Investing Sichuan, Investing Tourism and Investing Future has become prevalent knowledge.

The total incomes through both tourism contracting and tourism investment of Sichuan are expected to exceed RMB 100 billion this year. Sichuan Province is attempting to break through the double RMB 100 billion in both contracts and investments in tourism.

As the government of Sichuan Province has kept a close eye on promotions regarding investing in tourism industry in the last year, the income through tourism contracting had exceeded RMB 100 billion and RMB 87.9 billion had been attributed to the construction of the 100 key tourism projects. (Sichuan Daily, reported on September 11^th by Liu Xing)

In Last Eight Months, the Above-Scale Industrial Added Value of Sichuan is 7.9% Higher than Last Year

In last eight months, the above-scale industrial added value of Sichuan Province is 7.9% higher than last year, 0.2% lower than the first half year and 1.6% higher than the national average. Investments and consumption are still seeing rapid growth.

In terms of industrial economic operations, both accumulated and monthly growth rates of above-scale industrial added value of our province dropped. The data show that in August, the above-scale industrial added value of Sichuan is 6.9% which is higher than last years and the growth rate is 0.7% lower than July. Among the 41 industries, the industrial added values of 33 industries have increased.

In terms of investment in fixed assets, Sichuan Province has achieved a total investment in fixed assets of RMB 1.72261 trillion in the last eight months with a year-on-year growth of 11.0%. Wherein, the investment in fixed assets is 11.9% higher. From the view of industry, RMB 54.02 billion has been invested in the primary industry with a year-on-year growth of 30.8%, RMB 488.32 billion has been invested in the secondary industry with a year-on-year growth of 3.2% and RMB 1.18027 trillion has been invested in the tertiary industry with a year-on-year growth of 13.7%.

In terms of consumption, the total retail sales of consumer goods of Sichuan Province have reached RMB 881.5 billion with a year-on-year growth of 11.9% and growth rate is 1.4% higher than the national average. Wherein, the retail sales of rural consumer goods have been up to RMB 170.5 billion with a year-on-year growth of 13.3% and its growth rate is 1.7% higher than the consumer goods in urban retailers. (China Daily, reported on September 24^th by Dong Shimei and Wu Jing)

Foreign Trade

Opening Ceremony of Cezch Consulate General in Chengdu Kicked Off on September 8^th

Opening ceremony of Cezch Consulate General in Chengdu was kicked off on September 8^th. The Administrative Vice Minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cezch Republic-Lucas Kautsky and his accompanies, the Governor of the Cezch State-Milos Petra and his delegation attended the ceremony.

Cezch is an important portal for the implementation of Sichuan’s open strategy. In recent years, frequent high-level visits of both countries have seen great returns from cooperation in both economic and trade projects. Sichuan signed friendly cooperation agreement with Cezch Sate in May, 2005. Both countries have maintained good relations in recent years and achieved fruitful results in the fields of high-level visit, economy and trade, tourism, information industry, cultural communication, etc. Under the leadership of Governor Petra, a large delegation of approximately 60 peoples visited Sichuan with intention of signing a friendly agreement with our province. During the trip, the Sichuan-Cezch Economic and Trade Symposium, Cezch State Tourism Promotion Meeting, Cezch Cultural Relics and Arts Exhibition, Cezch Gourmet Festival and other activities were carried out. (Sichuan Daily, reported on September 2^nd by Liu Miaomiao)

The First International One-Stop Flight Opened on September 4^th to Connect Chengdu and Dubai

The first international one-stop flight was opened on September 4^th to connect Chengdu and Dubai. The flight will depart from Chengdu, stop by Yinchuan and finally arrive at Dubai with a total travel time of twelve hours.

An Airbus A-330 wide-body jet is the carriage of choice to soar between the two cities every Tuesday and Friday. Outbound flights will depart from Chengdu at 9:40 and arrive in Dubai at 18:00 local time, and inbound flights will depart from Dubai at 20:05 local time and arrive in Chengdu at 12:00 the following day with a total flight time of ten hours and a two-hour pit stop in Yinchuan

Previously, there were two flights from Chengdu to Dubai where passengers had to transfer in either Abu Dhabi or Doha. The Chengdu-Yinchuan-Dubai flight is the third regular international flight from Chengdu to the Middle East. (Sichuan Daily, reported on September 3^rd by Wang Meiling)

In the Last Eight Months Another 13 Global Top 500 Enterprises Set Offices in Sichuan

An additional 13 Global Top 500 enterprises have set up offices in Sichuan within the last 8 months. Sichuan, at this moment, has been attractive enough that altogether 296 Global Top 500 enterprises have established branch offices here which make Chengdu the top ranking area in the middle and western regions of China for Global Top 500 branch offices.

Among the new comers, six total Global Top 500 companies are from outside the country, with three fromAmericaand one each fromAustralia,FranceandEngland, bringing the total of foreign Global Top 500 enterprises inChinato 216.

Among all foreign Global Top 500 enterprises inChina, 188 enterprises have invested in the area, which accounts for 87% of total investments. 86 foreign Global Top 500 enterprises that have made direct investments have also established 188 direct investment companies in Sichuan with an accumulated investment total of USD 15.1 billion and contractual investments equaling USD 5.1 billion. Broken down, USD 9 billion has been spent on the construction of 100 manufacturing enterprises, USD 4.67 billion for 69 service enterprises and the remaining amount was divided among 17 infrastructure related enterprises and 2 mining enterprises. (Sichuan Daily, reported on September 10^th by Zeng Xiaoqing)

Signing Ceremony of Sichuan-America Enterprise Cooperation Project Held in San Francisco of California,America

On the afternoon of September 23^rd, the signing ceremony for the Cooperative Project for Sichuan-American Enterprises was held in San   Francisco, California,America. The Secretary of the Sichuan Provincial Party Committee Wang Dongming attended the event and witnessed the signing of a series of investment projects and strategic cooperation framework agreements (memo).

During the ceremony, contracts for 8 investment projects in the fields of genetic engineering, medical apparatus R&D and manufacturing, photoelectric optical fibers, logistics, e-business, new energy and new material, foods and catering had been signed with a total investment equaling about USD 590 million

Bonded Imports Exhibition Center Will be Built in Chengdu

The Chengdu Cross-Border E-Commerce  Industrial Park, located in the vicinity of a railway hub, signed a strategic cooperative agreement with Green Group on September 24^th. In the following two or three years, both parties will create industrial complexes like a bonded imports exhibition center and cross-border e-commerce industrial park.

This is the first agreement between Green Group and the Chengdu Cross-Border E-Commerce Industrial Park. This is the first cross-border e-commerce industrial park in Sichuan that aims to jointly build an O2O e-commerce platform and establish a bonded imports exhibition center and industrial parks to advance trade in imports and exports as well as accelerate the pace of progress for the Sichuan provincial cross-border trade system with the help of the Imported Wine and Foods Exhibition Center in the newly opened Chengdu Shuangliu Comprehensive Bonded Zone.

In addition, another e-commerce platform of the industrial park, the Global Trade Express Bus E-Commerce Platform which currently possesses 200,000 storage units, housing European and American foodstuffs, furniture, maternal and infant products, automobile accessories, daily goods, light luxuries and others is under construction under an accelerated time table. (Sichuan Daily, reported on September 25^th by Chen Bihong)

Key Projects

Government of Jinniu District Signed Northern Chengdu Reconstruction Agreement with an Investment of About RMB 31.5 Bln

The 2015 Investment Seminar & Project Signing Ceremony centered on Going into Jinniu, Winning in the Future was held in Jinniu District, Chengdu on September 23^rd. Five planned strategic cooperative projects involving urban tourism, city construction, educational input, financial cooperation and other fields were signed with OCT Group with a total investment equaling approximately RMB 31.5 billion.

In Jinniu District, OCT Group intends to invest RMB 10 billion on the construction of a major gateway in Chengdu which holds a large amount of historical culture, a modern service industry, modern tourism industry and high-end residences. Yintai Group has decided to invest RMB 6 billion on a high-end commercial complex project which has facilities for shopping, catering, entertainment, recreation, lodging, offices and residences. Luneng Group will invest RMB 5 billion towards a large-scale green city commercial complex project. In addition, Future Land and Shenzhou Tianli will also further focus on projects with a total investment of more than RMB 100 million. (Sichuan Daily, reported on September 24^th by Zhang Yuxi)

Industries

The Sichuan Provincial Additive Manufacturing Industrial Development Alliance Officially Set Up

The Sichuan Provincial Additive Manufacturing Industrial Development Alliance was officially established on August 26^th. There are currently 21 strategic emerging industrial development alliances in Sichuan Province.

The Sichuan Provincial Additive Manufacturing Industrial Development Alliance has a roster that includes 45 members and is looking to integrate traditional reductive manufacturing with additive manufacturing that will combine mass production with personalized customization and speed up the development of 3D printing technology and transform the manufacturing industry into additive manufacturing. The additive manufacturing industry is now in its infancy. There are three drawbacks plaguing its development. Firstly, it exposes the inconsistencies between the current situation and the technical demands of provincial enterprises. All current devices, materials and control systems still need further development. Next, different industries and disciplines have not been combined well enough with additive manufacturing technology. Finally, this kind of technology has not been widely applied. Many large, medium and small enterprises still have no available opportunities to learn about or test out this emerging industrial technology.

The Alliance will increase its efforts to integrate industrial resources with social resources, strengthen complements between resources and joint innovation between enterprises as well as strive to make technological breakthroughs and apply innovative technologies in the fields of aerospace, automobiles, engineering machinery, biomedicine and others (Sichuan Daily, reported on August 27^th by Dong Shimei and Wu Jing)

Chengdu International Copyright Trading Center Inaugurated

With the authorization of the National Copyright Administration of the PRC, the first copyright operation service platform in western region-Chengdu International Copyright Trading Center was officially inaugurated on September 20^th.

In 2014, the National Copyright Administration of the PRC permitted Chengdu to establish the Chengdu International Copyright Trading Center to fully protect cultural innovation and realize copyright appreciation by establishing a 6C service system that includes copyright registration, copyright evaluation, copyright financing, copyright incubation, copyright trading and copyright protection. In addition to providing these comprehensive services, the Chengdu International  Copyright Trading  Center will expand talent cultivation and pushes for the development of a copyright economy, trading and funds. This will speed up the integration of publication and distribution, radio, film and television copyrights. Anime, games, culture, art, computer services, advertising, design and handcraft industries can also take full advantage of copyrights. This will begin to stimulate the copyright market and bring about standardization, industrialization, marketization and internationalization in Chengdu's innovation industry. (Sichuan Daily, reported on September 21^st by Chen Bihong)

Convention & Exhibition Economy

2015 Sichuan International Cultural Tourism Festival was Kicked off in Yibin

The 2015 Sichuan International Cultural Tourism Festival was kicked off in Yibin on August 26^th. The Deputy Secretary of the Sichuan Provincial Party Committee and the Sichuan Provincial Governor Wei Hong announced the inaugural event in his speech. The Deputy Director of the China National Tourism Administration and the CEO of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Mario Hardy also said a few words during the opening ceremony.

The Sichuan International Cultural Tourism Festival has been held eight times and serves as an important platform to display high-quality tourism resources and cultural boutiques right here in Sichuan. This is its first time assembling in southern Sichuan. Altogether 21 international tourism organizations and representatives fromAmerica,France,Taiwanand other countries and regions attended the festival to experience the showcased tourism products and take part in promoting tourism, discussion and trading activities.

An awards ceremony for the Sichuan winners of the Ten Most Beautiful Tour Guides inChinaand the gold medal winners of the 2^nd Sichuan Provincial Folk Song Contest as well as the unveiling ceremony of the five newly created national AAAA scenic attractions in Sichuan all took place during the opening ceremony. Leaders also handed out certificates of honor to the 12 European panda enthusiasts who participated in the large international marketing campaign Panda Fans Travel to Sichuan that focus on the theme of Traveling the Southern Silk Road and Visiting the Home of the Pandas.

In addition, about 24 tourism projects involving scenic development, hotel construction and healthcare as well as a number of types of travel including rural, cultural, pension and leisure travel had been signed during the ceremony with a total contract amount of RMB 16.981 billion. (Sichuan Daily, reported on August 27^th by Hu Yanshu, Liu Xing and Yan Jing)

Chengdu Will be the Next Host City for the General Meeting of the UNWTO

At the 21^st General Meeting of the UNWTO that convened in Medellin,Colombiaon September 15^th (Beijing Time), Chengdu successfully obtained the rights to hold the 22^nd General Meeting of the UNWTO. Since 2003, this is the second timeChinaand the first time the western region has hosted such a dignified convention.

Representatives from the China National Tourism Administration, on behalf of the Chinese government, submitted the application to convoke the 22^nd General Meeting of the UNWTO in 2017, and representatives from the Chengdu government made statements and shared a video showcasing the beauty of the city. The convening congress unanimously consented to Chengdu's request to be the next city to host the General Meeting of the UNWTO.

This is the first time the General Meeting of the UNWTO has taken place inChina's western region and symbolizes the remarkable progress made here in westernChina. (Sichuan Daily, reported on September 17^th by Zhu Li)

TheChinaLuzhou Southwest Commodity Fair Took Place in Luzhou

The 2015 Third China Luzhou Southwest Commodity Fair centered on the theme of Innovative Development and Transformation and Upgrades was kicked off in Luzhou on the morning of September 16^th. Compared with the former two sessions, the software and hardware, exhibited ideas and presentation methods of this season have seen substantial improvements. These upgrades included the main exhibition district featuring O2O e-commerce, modern logistics and creative products and the division into three classifications including commodities, services and innovative entrepreneurship. Altogether 100,000 varieties of products were put on display.

The Sichuan boutique exhibition hall, European exhibition hall,Thailandexhibition hall, Malaysian exhibition hall and other special exhibition halls were set up and primarily showcased the distinguishing features inherent in Sichuan, Guizhou and Chongqing. The Commodity Fair embodied both regionalism and internationalism as well as the depth and variety of all featured commodities in the southwestern region.

The summit forum and speeches focused on the New Future of the Internet+Age, southwestern special signing meeting for e-business strategic cooperation and others were simultaneously conducted. Specialists and scholars in the Chinese e-business field as well as individuals with a wealth of practical experience attended the event and discussed the new development orientation of trade and e-commerce in southern Sichuan.

The Third China Luzhou Southwest Commodity Fair attracted 450,000 participants, an increase of 21% from the last session, achieving a volume of floor transactions totaling RMB 381 million and a volume of orders equaling RMB 860 million. It is predicted that the total volume of the 5-day fair will reach upwards of RMB 1.24 billion.

This commodity fair offered a total exhibition area of 500,000 m² and altogether 1,010 booths. About 520 enterprises came here to participate in the fair. (Sichuan Daily, reported on September 22^nd by Luo Zhiyang)

The 12^th Chengdu Food Festival Held During National Day

The 12^th Chengdu Food Festival of Tasty Chengdu and an Amusing World was held in the International Intangible Cultural  Heritage Park from October 1^st to the 7^th.

First held in 2004, the International Food & Tour Festival of China (Chengdu), now, the Chengdu Food Festival has become an important large-scale brand festival in Chengdu, Sichuan, and one of the few festivals that so well symbolize Chengdu. It is an essential window for the World Gourmet Capital (Chengdu) to publicly display its deep gastronomical culture.

A happy event for everyone in the city was convened. During the event, the 2015 Internet+ Food Summit Forum, the Folk Food Appraisal, the Cultural Cuisine Industrial Exhibition, Gourmet Tasting and other series of activities were held during the same period. In addition to traditional foods, many authentic foods from places around the world includingItaly,France,India,JapanandKoreawere showcased in the International Food Area which was expressly launched for this festival. Everyone was encouraged to help in their own way in activities including the annual Sichuan cuisine competition, annual folk food appraisal and cooking championship. (Sichuan Daily, reported on September 18^th by Zhang Yuxi)

The 3^rd China (Mianyang) Science & Technology International High-Tech Expo Convened to Great Success

The 3^rd China(Mianyang) Science & Technology International High-Tech Expo was again held in Mianyang from September 17^th to 20^th and was primarily divided into three parts, including displays and showcases, major activities and special events. The Czech Republic became the first guest of honor in the history of the Science & Technology International High-Tech Expo.

With a total exhibition area of 80,000 m², the indoor exhibition halls were partitioned into 15 sections that included the Guest of Honor Exhibition Area and the General Armament Department Exhibition Area. Altogether, 819 exhibitors appeared at the event, both the exhibition area and number of exhibitors reached record highs.

Strictly focusing on Technological Innovation, Military and Civilian Integration and Open Cooperation, 8 major activities and 17 special events were on display. The 819 participants including Global Top 500, enterprises renowned both at home and abroad, scientific research institutes and institutions of high education chiefly came from forty-seven countries, regions and thirteen first pilot regions and high-tech zones all across China. Among the 1,944 exhibition projects and 8,647 exhibited items, 314 projects had contracts that came to fruition at the expo with the total amount of all completed contracts valued at RMB 106 billion which topped the last session by 20%. Among the 563,000 visitors, there were more than 80,000 professionals in the crowd, 23.1% higher than the last assembly.

Technology and patents for inventions were highlights of the expo. 60 of the 1,054 published achievements were cooperative achievements in either technology or investment fields with a total amount coming to RMB 7.02 billion. 156 projects entered into contracts with a total amount of RMB 74.3 billion which rocketed past its last showing by 70%. Electronic information, equipment manufacturing, new energy resources, e-business and other hi-tech projects accounted for 91.6% of all contracts. (Sichuan Daily, reported on September 21^st by Zou Junchuan)

CCPIT Sichuan Council

Vice President Li Li Met Newly-Appointed Chief Representative Gangtian Yingzhi of the Chengdu JETRO Representative Office and his Delegation

Vice President Li Li of the CCPIT Sichuan Council met the newly-appointed Chief Representative Gangtian Yingzhi of the Chengdu JETRO Representative Office and his delegation on the afternoon of August 26^th, 2015.

Vice President Li Li firstly gave his warmest regards to Gangtian Yingzhi and expressed his gratitude to the former Chief Representative Zhongjing Bangshang who is in the process of transitioning his post to his replacement. Vice President Li Li stated that the Chengdu JETRO Representative Office, serving as a friendly and cooperative partner of the CCPIT Sichuan Council, has maintained a good rapport with the council since its establishment in 2014. He also wished that both parties will work together to consolidate existing achievements and continue the pursuit of enhancing their cooperative relationship.

Chief President Gangtian Yingzhi and former Chief Representative Zhongjing Bangshang presented their gratitude for the hospitality they received and introduced previous endeavors and the orientation of future ones. In addition, both parties also discussed ways to enhance cooperation.

CCPIT Sichuan Council Signed Memorandum of Cooperation with Messe Frankfurt (Shanghai)

President Li Li of the CCPIT Sichuan Council signed a memorandum of cooperation with the Chairman of the Board Cao Jiansheng of Messe Frankfurt (Shanghai) in Chengdu on August 25^th, 2015. They hope to realize a mutual bounty of advantages, resource sharing and joint development by conducting Automechanika Chengdu and the Smart Life Exhibition side by side. They also want to cooperate in personnel training and deepening strategic cooperation.

In 2014, the two established their strategic cooperative relationship and have cooperated ever since. This event was held to further develop the degree of cooperation between the two, symbolizing the steady progress of their bilateral strategic and cooperative relationship.

Sichuan Automobile Accessories Received Lots of Attention in Eastern Russian Market

From August 16^th to 24^th, 2015, Vice President Yi Yang of the CCPIT Sichuan Council went to Russia to participate in the 19^th Moscow International Auto Parts, After-Sales Service and Equipment Exhibition (hereinafter shortened to Automechanika Moscow) and conduct economic and trade conferences in both the Czech Republic and Poland as well as visit all pertinent economic and trade organizations. Statistics show that the total volume of transactions at the event reached up to USD 500,000.

The Automechanika Moscow, presently the largest automotive industry exhibition in bothRussiaand Eastern Europe, was sponsored by Messe Frankfurt to take specific measures to implement strategic cooperation between the CCPIT Sichuan Council and Messe Frankfurt (Shanghai). An exhibition hall with a total exhibition area of 36 m² was established for Sichuan enterprises to display more than 10 varieties of automobile and motorcycle spare parts and accessories including finished motorcycles, engine crankshafts for automobiles and motorcycles and automobile body panels. Nearly 3,000 visitors toured the Sichuan exhibition hall, with 300 professionals among the crowd. Sichuan Grand Royal Technology Company Ltd. achieved its goal in motorcycle exports of USD 500,000 with a Turkish dealer at the event.

The CCPIT Sichuan Council also conducted the Sichuan-Czech Enterprise Communication Conference and the Sichuan-Poland Enterprise Communication Conference with the Chambers of Commerce of both the Czech Republic and Poland respectively. At the conference, Vice President Yi Yang introduced the economy and trade situation here in Sichuan, its automobile market and Automechanika Chengdu. Vice President Boruiweiqi Mina of the Chamber of Commerce of the Czech Republic presented an overview of the state of development of the economy, the transportation and automobile industries in the Czech Republic and all relevant policies issued by the Czech Arbitration Committee in terms of arbitration and conciliation. The Vice President Malik Crozek of the Chamber of Commerce of Poland revealed the advantages of the economic environment and investment policies inPolandand also expressed his wish to further enhance cooperation with Sichuan under the policy of the One Belt One Road Initiative. Meanwhile, Vice President Malik Crozek also vowed to come to Sichuan with his delegation to visit this October and hold economic and trade conferences in Sichuan. Director Ma Kexin of the Media Office of the Polish Association of Automobile Manufacturers talked about the progress regarding the development of the Polish automotive industry.

The delegation also made official visits and kicked the tires at multiple enterprises.

President Li Gang in Attendance at 10th China-Northeast Asia Expo

President Li Gang, invited by the sponsor, attended the 10^th China–Northeast Asia Expo together with his team in the city of Changchun in Jilin Province on September 1^st, 2015. Jointly sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce, National Development and Reform Commission and Jilin Provincial People’s Government, this Expo covers 70,800 m² and was a comprehensive international fair that saw participation from all six countries in northeast Asia and was open to the whole world. There were nine pavilions including the Pavilion for the Revitalization of Old Industrial Bases in Northeast  China, Pavilion for Northeast Asian Countries and Pavilion for the Modern Service Industry. President Li Gang focused on the Pavilion for the Revitalization of Old Industrial Bases in Northeast China to probe for the 2016 China International Digital Life Expo to be held by our council.

The 2015 Northeastern Asia Business Forum jointly sponsored by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and Jilin Provincial Government was held during the Expo. Several officers from northeast Asia were present at the forum and shared their thoughts, including Vice President Wang Jinzhen of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, Deputy Director Chen Weigen of the Standing Committee of the Jilin Provincial People’s Congress. Other officials present included President Jin Zaihong of the South Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, the former Deputy Prime Minister Jin Zhenbiao of South Korea, Secretary General Yang Xiuping of the ASEAN-China Center and the Governor of Volgograd Oblast,Russia. President Li Gang attended the forum together with 200 other people who were government officers from the six countries spread across northeast Asia and representatives of research institutes and commerce associations.

Deputy President Wang Jinzhen has indicated that all northeast Asian countries are facilitating their own economic development and promoting their companies’ international competitiveness through active participation in regional economic cooperation. Acceleration and promotion of economic integration levels and trade and investment facilitation levels is becoming increasingly important, which can realize mutual benefits and win-win results that will lead to concerted development in regional economies.China’s economy is on the verge of entering into a stage of medium and high speed growth, and the quality of development is continuing to improve, which will provide every northeast Asian county with even more opportunities across multiple markets, growth, investments and cooperation. Chinese industrial and commercial circles would like to continuously expand pragmatic cooperation with all northeast Asian countries in a concerted effort to expand local economies. Representatives who participated in the meeting thoroughly discussed three topics including the Free Trade Area Construction and Northeast Asia Economic Cooperation, the Cooperation and Development of the One Belt One Road with Northeast Asian Countries and Strengthening Cooperation of Economic Circles for Accelerating Mutual Prosperity in Northeast Asia.

President Li Gang also attended the 2015 Roundtable Meeting of the Northeast Asia Chambers of Commerce before the forum. Representatives of more than twenty commercial chambers from China, Japan, South Korea, Mongolia and Russia were present and comprehensively discussed the heightened and mutually-beneficial cooperation between economic and trade groups among northeast Asian countries and promoted the establishment of a Northeast Asia Commerce Council with the release of the Consensus of 2015 Roundtable Meeting of the Northeast Asia Chambers of Commerce.

President Li Gang Met With Chairman Du Zhiqiang of Singaporean Tianfu Association

 President Li Gang met with Chairman Du Zhiqiang of the Singaporean Tianfu Association and his team on September 6^th, 2015 and hospitably welcomed them.

President Li Gang has mentioned that the Singaporean Tianfu Association plays a significant role as an important platform and organization for communication and cooperation between Sichuan andSingapore. Chairman Du is a famous entrepreneur and Chinese representative inSingaporeand has profound influence. As the chief representative inSingapore, he prefers to further publicize Sichuan to assist Sichuan companies in going abroad and exploring the international market. President Li Gang also introduced our council’s important exhibitions, projects and plans in 2016, aiming to be supported and assisted by the Singaporean Tianfu Association.

Chairman Du Zhiqiang has introduced the main purpose of the Singaporean Tianfu Association and has indicated that the association will provide services to Sichuan companies with all they have to principally enhance communication and cooperation on investments and trade.

Vice President Lv Furong AttendedChina(Guangdong) International Internet+ Exposition

Vice President Lv Furong went to Guangdong Province to attend the China (Guangdong) International Internet+ Exposition together with her team between September 9^th and 11^th, 2015, and visited the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Guangdong Council, Worldex Fiera Milano Exhibitions (Guangzhou) Co., Ltd. and ZTE Corporation for inquiries and talks.

The China (Guangdong) International Internet+ Exposition was the first Internet+ exposition inChina, with the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Guangdong Council sponsoring the event under the guidance of the Guangdong Provincial Government, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and Ministry of Science and Technology. This exposition covered 31,000 m², which were divided up into nine exhibition areas which included the intelligent manufacturing area, Internet+ frontier technology area, smart city area and intelligent home area, which attracted 456 domestic and foreign exhibitors to display their latest products and available technology across all fields. Several activities were also held during the corresponding period, including the Internet+ Summit Forum, Made in China 2025 Meets German Industry 4.0 Conference and 2^nd World Robot and Intelligent Equipment Industry Conference. Secretary Hu Chunhua of the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee and a member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, Deputy Secretary Zhu Xiaodan of the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee and Governor of Guangdong Province and Vice President Lu Pengqi of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade were all in attendance at the opening ceremony. Ms. Lv Furong attended the opening ceremony, the summit forum and found time to visit the Internet+ frontier technology area, smart city area and intelligent home area. She talked with Vice President Ge Jingdong of Sina.com to discuss matters pertaining to cooperation regarding a smart life exhibition planned for Sichuan.

Ms. Lv Furong has held talks with Vice President Qiu Zhaoxian of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Guangdong Council and the principal of the exhibition department to discuss further cooperation on such exhibition projects as the Chinese Commodity Exhibition in India and Smart Life Exhibition while visiting the Guangzhou Council. She also visited the smart city area and intelligent home area and held informal discussions with General Manager Zou Haifeng of ZTE Environmental Protection Co., Ltd. to unearth means to develop ZTE in smart city construction and environmental protection and hear what they have to say on the Smart Life Exhibition while visiting the company.

China Council for Promotion of International Trade Sichuan Council Organized Companies to Do Business inTurkey,IsraelandItaly

The Secretary General of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Sichuan Council prompted companies to participate in the 84^th Izmir International Fair inTurkeybetween the dates of August 21^st and September 1^st, 2015. They also convened a business network forum inItalyandIsraeland visited relevant commercial chambers, associations and trade organizations.

The Izmir International Fair is the biggest international fair inTurkey. This year’s fair was held in the Izmir  International Exhibition  Center on August 28^th. It was the first time the Sichuan Council arranged companies to partake in the fair and established a Sichuan exhibition area that covered 108 m² to exhibit more than ten kinds of distinctive agricultural products, such as ramie products, and green foodstuffs (mainly composed of chrysanthemum products, organic tea, organic corn canned goods, purple potato drinks and bean products). The Sichuan exhibition area attracted nearly 10,000 visitors, with 500 professionals making an appearance. The amount of successful cooperative intension agreements was valued at about USD 5.5 million.

The delegation met with Chairman Amando of the Italian China Economy, Industry and Trade Cooperative Association while visitingItaly. Secretary General Lei Xuejie made a brief introduction to the state of Sichuan and its business activities, such as CAPAS Chengdu and theChina(Chengdu) International Smart City and Intelligent Household Expo and invited Italian companies to participate. Chairman Amando has revealed the association’s willingness to cooperate with China and has acknowledged the implementation of the Memorandum of Cooperation that will accelerate economic and trade cooperation betweenItalyand Sichuan. He is organizing Italian agricultural companies to visit Sichuan and investigate agricultural projects on a future date.

InIsrael, the Sichuan Council held theChina(Sichuan)–Israel Business Connection Forum with the help of the Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Haifa. General Secretary Lei Xuejie has introduced major exhibitions of our council and invited Israeli chambers of commerce to participate. Manager Eit Lahm of the International Department of the Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce and Vice President Mace of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Haifa have introduced their state of business withinChina. They hope to sign the Memorandum of Cooperation with the council to give full play to the functions available to the chamber of commerce, strengthen economic and trade exchanges as well as cooperation with Sichuan. There are also plans to facilitate cooperation on new high tech farming, clean energy and water treatment as well as enhance information exchanges and project cooperation in exhibitions.

General Secretary Lei Xuejie also visited Principal Jia Yuhui of the China Pavilion of the World Exposition Milano 2015, Counselor Wu Bin of the Economic and Commercial Counselor’s Office of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Israel, Vice General Manager Hassan of the Izmir Exhibition Center (Organizing Committee) and Chairman Song Zibin of the Turkish Chinese Merchants Union Association to build a good foundation for Sichuan companies Going Abroad.