The Sharjah China Commodities Trade Fair, slated for December 10-14, will have on show a range of Chinese commodities including machinery, hi-tech, petrochemical and engineering products as well as light industrial goods, furniture and construction and interior decorating materials.

There will also be booths featuring two-way investment between China and the countries of the Middle East, an official with the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC) said Friday.

The Middle East is a huge potential market China aims to put great efforts into tapping. The UAE is an important place of transit where about 70 percent of imports are re-exported to other countries in the Middle East, north Africa and part of Europe.

Such a major trade fair in Sharjah will help China export more commodities to the Middle East and expand economic cooperation between China and the countries there, a MOFTEC official said.

Over the past two years, the China Machinery and Electronic Products Exhibition Center (Chinamex), a joint venture established in 2000 by China and UAE in Sharjah, has held a dozen fairs in Sharjah. They attracted about 30,000 businessmen from more than 30countries and resulted in some US$two billion worth of contracts and letters of intent.

(eastday.com July 27, 2002)