The ongoing third China International Import Expo is an ideal platform for enterprises to network in China and seize new opportunities.

The total business exhibition space for the third CIIE spans some 30,000 square meters larger than last year. The business exhibition area for the third CIIE is divided into six exhibition sections displaying food and agricultural products, automobiles, intelligent industry and information technology, consumer goods, medical equipment and healthcare products, as well as trade in services.

This year, four special exhibition subsections for public health, smart transportation, energy conservation and environmental protection, and sporting goods, have been set up. The public health subsection, located in the exhibition area for medical equipment and healthcare products, showcases recent public health success stories.

More Fortune Global 500 companies and industry leaders than ever are present at this year's CIIE.

According to the CIIE Bureau, the exhibition area for Fortune Global 500 companies and industry leaders is up 14 percent from last year. Dozens of such companies have attended the expo for three consecutive years.

In the face of the COVID-19 outbreak, global buyers have showed a continued interest in taking part in the trade fair. Some 400,000 professional visitors from 112,000 companies signed up for the event. The event also boasts 39 buyer groups and nearly 600 sub-groups. Among those registered buyers, 2,238 companies each have more than $1 billion in annual sales revenue. Nearly 1,400 companies are each worth more than $100 million in annual import value. Buyers from the manufacturing, wholesale and retail industries account for 30.6 percent, 16 percent and 8.2 percent of the total number of buyers. Professional buyers from the Yangtze River Delta region, Pearl River Delta region and Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region account for nearly one-third of all buyers, according to statistics from the CIIE Bureau.

The expo is not only a platform for international procurement and investment promotion, but also a vital setting for cooperation and cultural exchange. Exhibition areas displaying national-level pedestrianized shopping streets, time-honored brands, intangible cultural heritage and tourism in China are set up to promote cultural exchanges during the third CIIE.