The Frankfurt Book Fair 2002 formally got underway on October 9 in Germany, attracting 6,375 exhibitors from 110 countries. Of them 178 are from China.

As the Guest of Honour for 2002, Lithuania won't be displaying cultural relics as did Greece the year before, but instead introduces a new central theme Bridges for a World Divided. The new theme aims to open up debate on issues of equality and justice within the context of globalization and is drawing large audiences. About 1,500 different books about Lithuania, published by either domestically or by other countries, have been collected from around the world and displayed here in Frankfurt. The Lithuanians are focusing on the country's literature, bringing with them around 30 authors to Germany.

A German publisher centring mainly on the Bible-related business confirmed his happiness by stating that his company has a extra room and additional participating personnel with more books and CDs to display than ever before.

Upon entering Hall No. 8, where the English and American press are located, one is surrounded by the busy atmosphere stemming from the talk of copyright and trade. With the United States still under the shadows of the September 11 attacks, Hall No. 8 is the only hall to conduct security checks, but people continue to swarm in. This is in stark contrast to last year's event when people were unwilling to line up and undergo intrusive examination procedures. Large publishers such as the Oxford University Press and Dolphines are all present at this year's affair.

China has sent out an exhibition team of 303 people from 178 publishing and bookselling houses, but didn't manage achieve the goals they set themselves for the first day. However, this result does nothing to disguise the fact that the Chinese publishing industry has been undergoing rapid expansion in recent years. More and more foreign readers continue to take an interest in Chinese publications closely reflecting the country's steady economic growth.

In fact, the overall number of exhibitors at the book fair has decreased since last year. Compared with last year about four percent fewer companies have made their way to Frankfurt for this year's event. Of all the exhibitors, 2,128 are from Germany, down from 2,474 last year, according Volker Neumann, director of the Frankfurt Book Fair.

Neumann attributed this to the general economic outlook for the last two years. "The media industry as a whole is going through difficult times. This is true for book publishers as well." he said. A number of publishing companies and established bookshops have gone out of business.

On examining reasons for the declining number of German exhibitors, Neumann pointed to structural factors. For example in the art section, Germany has focused on art books and book art, weakening the role gallery exhibitors may have played in the book fair. Also, a downturn in electronic media has been an ongoing trend for several years now. The publishers of electronic media, predominantly traditional publishing companies, have tended to integrate these exhibits with their main exhibition presentations at the fair.

(china.org.cn by staff reporter Li Jinhui October 10, 2002)