Shandong BRICS Trade Conference Draws Delegates From 30 Countries
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 23 (Bernama) -- More than 100 business delegates from 30 countries and regions, including BRICS members and partner nations, met over 200 local companies at a trade and investment conference that opened in Jinan, the capital of east China’s Shandong province.
Now in its third edition, the "Dialogue with BRICS - Shandong International Trade and Investment Conference" is organised by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) Shandong Sub-council.
According to a statement, this year’s event featured more than 500 one-on-one matchmaking meetings focusing on agricultural products, green and low-carbon industries, machinery, high-end chemicals and the digital economy.
Business groups from Malaysia, Indonesia and other countries highlighted opportunities in smart manufacturing and industrial parks. Institutions from non-BRICS countries, including Germany, Serbia and Canada, also used the event to expand their partnership networks.
The League of Arab States Mission in Beijing head, Ahmed Mustafa Fahmy Hafez said Arab states were pursuing economic diversification and saw strong potential for cooperation with Shandong in four areas, namely green energy transition, agriculture and food security, infrastructure and the digital economy, as well as trade and financial innovation.
Ethiopian Embassy in China Minister Counsellor Nahom Berhanu Wendaferew promoted his country’s investment potential in agro-processing, pharmaceuticals, textiles, and information and communications technology.
In a keynote speech, Center for China and Globalization (CCG) deputy director Gao Zhikai called for open-source artificial intelligence and international cooperation to boost productivity and deliver shared gains.
University of International Business and Economics former president Zhao Zhongxiu urged Shandong’s leading firms to go beyond exporting goods, taking entire industrial chains overseas through technical services and talent development, prioritising equipment manufacturing, green energy, modern agriculture and the marine economy.
Shandong-based Meide Group said its total shipments to BRICS member states from 2024 through the third quarter of 2026 had reached 1.676 billion Chinese yuan (US$249 million). (US$1 = RM4.07)
The BRICS member states account for roughly half the world’s population, about 30 per cent of global gross domestic product and one-fifth of world trade, according to CCPIT Shandong Sub-council.
-- BERNAMA