Following Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai, a number of auto shows have been held in Central China's Wuhan, and Northeast China's Changchun, Shenyang and Dalian cities in the forms of trade fairs or expositions.

In addition to the domestic competition, Hannover Fairs Ltd of Germany will sponsor an international auto show in Shanghai at the end of the year.

Insiders explained that with China's imminent accession into the World Trade Organization, more auto producers will scramble for a share of the country's large automobile market.

Among the many auto shows, the Auto Exhibition in Beijing with 10 years of history has been acknowledged as representing the highest auto exhibition level in China. The 80,000 square meter exhibiting space drew some 100,000 visitors daily last year.

The Second Changchun International Auto Show currently underway in this capital of northeast China's Jilin Province, which is known as the cradle of China's national automobile industry, has built itself into a powerful rival to the auto shows in Beijing and Shanghai.

More than 500 car models are on show at the 75,000-square meter exhibiting hall. The show has mirrored the bold endeavor of China' s auto industry to compete on the stage of its foreign counterparts.

(Xinhua 08/27/2001)