Gulangyu Island in Xiamen

On Thursday, June 14^th, 2018, the Baltimore Development Corporation (BDC) invited American company representatives to listen to Xiamen, China delegates who spoke on the 20^th annual China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT) event. BDC is a non-profit group that serves to provide economic development programs and opportunities for the city of Baltimore. In November 1985, Baltimore Mayor William Donald Schaefer and Xiamen Mayor Zou Erjun established the Baltimore-Xiamen sister city agreement. Since then, the relationship between the two cities has opened doors for transnational business opportunities, as China’s economy has grown to have a lot to offer.

One international event that Xiamen now offers, and one of Baltimore’s more prominent business opportunities, is the CIFIT event held annually on September 8-11 in Xiamen, Fujian Province of China. Each CIFIT is focused on foreign direction investment (FDI) and promoting international economic and trade exchange between foreign and domestic businesses and investors. Every year, the Fair hosts more than 500 international companies and is attended by over 200,000 investors. Xiamen is the annual host of the event because of its blossoming industries, such as shipbuilding (both construction and commercial use), tourism, fishing, manufacturing, and more.

At the CIFIT briefing on Thursday, Eric Chen, director and general officer of the operations department for the Fair, discussed Xiamen’s main points of emphasis going into the 20^th annual CIFIT:

• Business to Business (B2B) investment project matchmaking will allow international businesses, big and small, to find valuable partnerships in order to facilitate international economic growth. CIFIT will have exhibitions and meetings to promote these types of projects, and the International Investment Forum (IIF) will have a series of seminars and symposia specifically for investment project matchmaking. Businesses and investors can ultimately expect to find mutually beneficial investment opportunities with Chinese and international businesses. This coincides with CIFIT’s U.S. promotion of bilateral foreign investment into China, allowing foreign investors and businesses to take advantage of China’s expanding economy.
• The One Belt One Road (BRI) Initiative will be a major discussion point at many of CIFIT’s forums and seminars. With the BRI initiative being an economic project with sites all over the world, countries and businesses will be able to learn about how they can get involved. There will also be opportunities to discuss the initiative itself and its future in order to shape its direction to be more effective and beneficial for all parties involved. These discussions will give participants a chance to learn about potential investment opportunities or how they can benefit from China’s BRI.
• Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS), as major developing international economies, will also be a high focal point of the fair. Chinese development zones, BRICS emerging industries, and copyright investment resources will all be made available for investors at CIFIT. As most of these economies grow and reach a more international stage, there is also a growing need for foreign investment to facilitate healthy economic growth and structuring. CIFIT will provide the opportunities to get involved in the developing and fast-growing economies in a variety of capacities.

FAO GLOBAL ASSESSMENT

The China International Fair for Investment and Trade looks to provide special opportunities for international businesses and investors to get involved on a global scale. CIFIT is China’s only international investment promotion event aimed at facilitating bilateral investment, which means that this event provides very unique resources for investment in and out of China as well as providing B2B matchmaking with other non-Chinese international partners. Not only does CIFIT provide a means by which foreign businesses and investors can invest in China, its host city, Xiamen, is an impressive and intriguing investment opportunity as well. China’s President Xi Jinping started CIFIT in 1987 and chose Xiamen as its host because of its burgeoning economy. Xiamen was designated as one of China first four Special Economic Zones in 1980, allowing for easier foreign investment and trade. An impressive list of U.S. investors in Xiamen includes GE, Kodak, Dell, Boeing, Coca-Cola, and Walmart. Xiamen’s port also ranks in the world’s top twenty container ports and ranks number eight in GDP in China, ahead of Shanghai, Beijing, and 649 other Chinese cities.

In light of recent US-China trade tensions, Xiamen signifies an impressive and timely investment opportunity for U.S. businesses and investors. U.S. patrons and visitors only made up about 2.8% of the total at CIFIT’s most recent event in 2017, making this a sort of untapped resource for American investors and firms looking to get involved with China. Having the expertise of a company like FAO Global will allow American companies to make the most of important networking events like this one, giving U.S. business representatives years of collective expertise on entering and expanding in such an exciting market as they meet with top leadership at world renown companies, government officials, and investors.

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About the Author: Dillon Billingham is currently studying at University of South Carolina’s Darla Moore School of Business, majoring in international business and finance while minoring in Chinese studies with a data analytics concentration. His focus is on the promotion of US-China business through mutually beneficial relationships.

Interested to Attend CIFIT?

FAO Global is preparing a business delegation to attend. Contact us at DC@FAOGlobal.com to find out more.