"People from UK and other parts of the world are benefiting from the progress of China's economy and the Made-in-China products coming to Birmingham Spring Fair," Mike Whitby, leader of the Birmingham City Council said in Birmingham on Monday.

Touring the European Showcase for Brands of China, which opened Monday morning, Whitby said it is encouraging to see that some Chinese firms are joining hands with British and other European businessmen in their drive to make their business more international.

Susino, one of the leading umbrella manufacturers in China is attending the week-long Chinese brand show with its branch in Britain.

Xiaoya Zhang, director of the Susino UK ltd, said she feels very proud that her company is enjoying an unexpectedly welcoming market in Britain, a country which for long has been regarded as a country of fog by Chinese, with umbrellas as their must-haves.

Zhang said her company, one of the leading umbrella producer and the biggest exporter, is trying to enlarge its market share while actively extend its manufacturing capability.

Aoqi Inflatables, a Guangzhou-based balloon, blimps and inflatable building producer come to the Chinese brand show at the Birmingham Spring Fair, with their cooperators from Ireland.

While firms like the umbrella-producer and the Aoqi Inflatable bring their European cooperators to the fair, Yipeng Lin is attracting locals, mainly those of Indian origins to his stand, with his Indian sculptures.

Many customers tried to persuade Lin to let them be the sole agent for Lin in Britain, which over 1 million Indian descendants take as their second if not the first homeland.

Over 80 Chinese enterprises are attending the fair, with a view to further promoting the economic and trade cooperation and exchange between China and Europe, as well as to making Chinese brands better known among both the trade visitors and consumers in the European Union, said Xinhua Liu, leader of the Chinese business delegation.

The exhibits on display include well-known brand Chinese products covering the areas of gifts, stationery, textile and garments, kitchen utensils, bags and suitcases, house ware, garden facilities and small electrical appliances, with high technology and the latest design in the respective fields.

As the Chinese economy and its foreign trade continue their rapid growth, Chinese businesses, on the basis of research and innovation while at the same time inheriting and developing traditional techniques, are paying ever more attention to raising the technology content and quality of their products, and to nurturing their own brands names, Liu said.

In recent years, some Chinese enterprises have started to establish mature brands, which are increasingly winning international recognition, and enjoying certain influence in the international market like Haier, Lenovo and Changhong, among others, constantly providing quality products and services to the business circles and consumers in Europe.

The European Showcase for Brands of China has been held four times since 2004.

(Xinhua News Agency February 5, 2008)