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Home > GERMANY > Geschftsveranstaltungen
ITALY AT THE ASEM TRADE AND INVESTMENT FAIR TO STRENGTHEN TIES WITH CHINA
Italy and "Made in Italy" will be represented at the Asem Trade & Investment Fair on SMEs from 29 October to 1 November 2007 (www.asem-expo.com). The event spawns directly from the Asia-Europe Meeting (Asem), a permanent summit between 16 Asian countries - including China, Japan, South Korea, India, Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia - and the 27 Member States of the European Union. The objective of the Asem - which also brings to the table the European Commission and the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asia Nations) secretariat - is to strengthen the political dialogue, trade relations and cultural exchanges between East and West.
Upon suggestion of the Italian Trade Minister, ICE (Italian Trade Commission) has organised an official delegation at the fair to strengthen the cooperation between Italian and Chinese SMEs. This initiative takes place in a positive period for exchanges between Italy and China: in the first half of 2007, the value of Italian exports to China grew by 9.7% to 3 billion euros, compared to the same period in 2006. An import rate of more than twice that amount (+22.8% to 10.4 billion), however, worsened the Italian trade deficit to 7.4 billion euros.
China's need for raw materials is also reflected in the list of the main products that Italy exports to China: in value, the category which has recorded the highest increase in the first six months of 2007 is 'other machinery for special uses' (+11.5% to 592,8 million euros di eur), followed by 'machinery and appliances for the production and use of mechanic energy' (+11.5% to 225.8 million euros). According to statistics by the Italian Trade Ministry, 1.3% of Chinese imports of manufactured products came from Italy - the third highest share in Europe after Germany (5.7%) and France (1.7%). In 2006, Italy recorded the highest import shares in China in clothing (10.4%), footwear (10.9%) and specialised industrial machinery (5.7%).
Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao's proposal to organise an Asem Trade & Investment Fair on was formally adopted by all Asem members at the sixth Asia-Europe meeting held in Helsinki in September 2006. The fair currently takes place in the Chinese city of Qingdao. The event's rational is summarised in the slogan "Promoting SME trade relations and investments between Asia and Europe". The objective, therefore, is to create a platform through which Asem members can cooperate - be they entrepreneurs or government officials.
On October 30th and 31st, the Italian Minister for Trade Emma Bonino will attend the Asem SMEs Ministerial Meeting, which aims to promote trade and investment between Asian and European SMEs, as well as the Asem Trade & Investment Fair on SMEs. In this context, the meeting will welcome input derived from the debates held during the fair. All those who will attend the Ministerial Meeting will visit the Qingdao fair.
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