China News Service: The fourth China-Central and Eastern European Countries Expo and International Consumer Goods Fair (China-CEEC Expo) is being held in Ningbo, Zhejiang. Can you share more details with us?

Mao Ning: The fourth China-Central and Eastern European Countries Expo and International Consumer Goods Fair (China-CEEC Expo) opened in Ningbo, Zhejiang on May 22. State Councilor Shen Yiqin attended and addressed the opening ceremony. Richard Rasi, Chairman of the National Council of Slovakia, the guest country of honor, and Meira Hot, Vice President of the National Assembly of Slovenia, also the guest country of honor, delivered remarks respectively. Both Chinese and foreign guests spoke highly of China-CEEC cooperation, noting that with the joint efforts of the two sides, the mutually beneficial cooperation has been strengthened, promising broad prospects for common development of the two sides.

The expo has held over ten key events, including business discussions, investment promotion and people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and is scheduled to hold more than 50 industry- and country-specific events which are smaller in scale but well-designed to unlock opportunities for cooperation in all dimensions. Seven political leaders and over ten senior officials at the vice-ministerial level or above from Central and Eastern European countries as well as over 3,000 foreign buyers from 72 countries and regions attended the expo. Intended procurement is projected to exceed RMB 10 billion. 

This expo fully demonstrates that the China-CEEC cooperation mechanism not only gives a boost to trade and economic exchanges, but also promotes people-to-people and cultural exchanges. The expo is still ongoing. We welcome friends from different sectors and other countries to actively participate in the expo to experience in person the vibrancy of China-CEEC cooperation.