Czech beer, Slovenian honey, Hungarian down products...... At the 4th China-CEEC Expo and International Consumer Goods Expo held in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, more than 8,000 kinds of CEE characteristic commodities were unveiled, and the matchmaking between Chinese and foreign exhibitors was in full swing. This is a vivid footnote to the "two-way rush" of economic and trade cooperation between China and CEE countries.

Central and Eastern European goods are heading east

At the scene, the booth of a Bulgarian company wafted with the fragrance of flowers, and the booth was crowded. "Chinese consumers know Bulgarian rose essential oil better than we thought!" Lia Petkova, sales manager of the Bulgarian company "Marila Essential Oils", said excitedly as she tried the product for consumers. "This is our first time to participate in the exhibition in China, and we are fortunate that the fair provides us with a platform for communication and cooperation."

She said that by participating in the expo, she has the opportunity to promote the products of her own country and establish business contacts with enterprises from China. Pavlou Kristos, the company's sales director, has lived in China for three years, and he is fascinated by the breadth of the Chinese market and the strong economic vitality of the company. He said that on behalf of the company, he has previously participated in large-scale Chinese exhibitions such as the China International Import Expo and the China International Consumer Products Expo, and China's huge consumer market means broad development prospects for enterprises in Central and Eastern European countries. For the first time, the expo set up the "Digital Intelligence Central and Eastern Europe" exhibition area, gathering the world's cutting-edge scientific and technological forces to attract people to visit and experience.

Zhu Xiaojing, the general manager of China of Florsco Technology Co., Ltd., brought a translator that can translate spoken words, pictures and text in real time. She said that the company set up a branch in Shenzhen last year, and the company's products are now sold at airports in 36 cities in China. "China is not only giving orders to CEE companies, but also the ticket to join the Chinese market." She said that the company regards the Chinese market as one of the key business directions in the future, and will further improve its products in response to the needs of Chinese consumers.

Chinese companies are heading west

With the continuous development of economic and trade cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European countries, more and more Chinese manufacturing is accelerating its expansion to Central and Eastern European countries. Slovenia's first flagship store for Dongfeng Motor in China opened in October 2024. In order to meet the diversified needs of the local market, China Dongfeng Motor Industry Import and Export Co., Ltd. has launched various types of vehicles such as new energy, fuel and hybrid, and has won the favor of more and more Slovenian consumers with high-quality products and services.

Cao Wandi, regional manager of the overseas marketing department of passenger cars of China Dongfeng Motor Industry Import and Export Co., Ltd., said that the incremental space of Slovenia's new energy vehicle market is significant, and it is in the golden entry period of the "blue ocean market". "China-CEEC cooperation conforms to the general trend of globalization, and the cooperation between the two sides is basically stable and has good prospects." Yan Dong, Vice Minister of Commerce, said that China has a complete industrial system and innovative technology, CEE countries have obvious advantages in traditional industries, strong demand for greening and digital transformation, and the two sides complement each other's industries, so there is a very broad space for economic and trade cooperation between the two sides in the future.

An accelerator for deepening cooperation

From 2019 to 2023, the China-CEEC Expo has been successfully held in Ningbo for three times, which has played an important role in enhancing the understanding of CEE commodities in the Chinese market, expanding the export of CEE commodities to China, and building consensus on cooperation between China and CEE countries.

Lu Shan, Vice Governor of Zhejiang Province, said that this year's expo has stronger characteristics of Central and Eastern Europe, more refined activity arrangements and higher international participation. The Central and Eastern European exhibition area of this expo reached 20,000 square meters, and more than 400 exhibitors were invited to participate in the exhibition. In addition, for the first time, the expo set up a special zone for the charm of Central and Eastern Europe, which is divided into five modules: "calligraphy, art, painting, printing and tourism" to display the cultural customs of Central and Eastern European countries.

With the continuous optimization of the access assessment system and the significant improvement of customs clearance efficiency, more and more Central and Eastern European delicacies such as Polish amber beer, canned Latvian fish, and Serbian dried plums have poured into the Chinese market in recent years, enriching consumers' choices.

Zhao Zenglian, Deputy Director General of the General Administration of Customs, said that China-CEEC cooperation is bringing more certainty to the current complex and volatile international situation with practical tenacity, and injecting stability and positive energy into the world economy with the coordinated development of China and the region.(This article is from the official website of Seetao www.seetao.com. Reprinting without permission is strictly prohibited. Please indicate Seetao.com + original link when reprinting) Seetao.com Strategy Column Editor/Sun Fengjuan