MATRADE upbeat on hitting RM185 mil in sales at CAEXPO

This is a 10 percent increase from last year's sales of RM168 million, said Malaysia Pavilion project director Ong Yiew Chee.

“Hopefully we can achieve that. I believe we can achieve that (target) because the buying power of China is very strong,” he told the Malaysian media covering the event to be held on Sept 18-21.

He said with Nanning being an important area, the trade show at the Nanning International Exhibition and Convention Centre (N.I.C.E.C.) in Guang Xi province would be a good platform to promote the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area.

Ong said China has always been an important trading partner to Malaysia and expressed hope the relationship would continue.

MATRADE, he added, needs to be aggressive in promoting trade with China and the ASEAN countries, with CAEXPO a suitable platform to tap into those markets.

“As far as MATRADE is concerned, we need to be aggressive. We just cannot sit down. I think our Prime Minister has just announced new measures that involve a lot of promotions (that) need to be done especially in China,” he said.

He said the CAEXPO, China's second largest trade exhibition, is seeing very strong participation from all the ASEAN countries, with the Malaysian Pavilion getting good response.

He expressed hope Malaysia would get a bigger pavilion next year to accommodate more participants including government-linked companies (GLCs) in promoting the whole package of Malaysia rather than just private companies.

A total of 149 Malaysian companies, 53 per cent of which are new to the event, will be showcasing their products and services. Sectors that dominate the Malaysia Pavilion this year include food and beverages, health and wellness and services.