The 2023 China Brand Fair (Central and Eastern Europe) returned to Budapest after three years, highlighting China-Hungary commercial and economic connections.
Thanks to nearly 230 Chinese exhibitors, this three-day show, now in its sixth year, has become a major venue for business contacts and economic cooperation.
Wu Zhengping, director general of the Trade Development Bureau of the Ministry of Commerce of China, acknowledged bilateral economic and trade progress.
“The fair sends a signal throughout Europe, providing a comprehensive platform for exhibitions, trade negotiations, investment cooperation, and cultural exchange,” he added.
He stressed Hungary’s important location in China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and encouraged businesses to employ international supply networks and logistical services like the China-Europe freight trains.
Budapest hosts the return of the China Brand Fair
Wu urged Hungarian enterprises to invest in China, promoting two-way investment and balanced trade. He hoped this platform would help entrepreneurs and friends “foster friendship, engage in cooperative discussions, and jointly plan for the future”.
“Hungary has become China’s largest investment destination in Central and Eastern Europe,” said Liu Bo, Chinese embassy minister-counselor in Hungary.
The first expo following the COVID-19 epidemic will strengthen bilateral economic and commercial relations, highlighting the BRI’s role in encouraging growth.
Szabolcs Szolnoki, deputy state secretary for technology of Hungary’s Ministry of Economic Development, thanked the event, saying that China is Hungary’s largest non-EU economic partner.
He informed guests that Chinese items had the best quality and price-per-performance ratio.
Erno Peto, president of the Chinese Hungarian Chamber of Economy, lauded the event for linking firms and fostering mutually beneficial partnerships. “The China Brand Fair is the largest and most important Chinese brand exhibition in Central and Eastern Europe.”
Local businesspeople see the exhibition as a forum for peaceful commerce and interaction between China and Central and Eastern Europe.
After the opening ceremony, 26-year-old energy entrepreneur Kristof Horvath told Xinhua, “We are looking for new opportunities, we want to find new markets, and that’s why we have come to this exhibition.
“I’m impressed by the variety of products and the large area,” he remarked.
Mate Kovacs, his 27-year-old catering business mate, said, “It is really worth coming here because we can touch and try the products with our hands, it is much better than just scrolling pics on the web.