From left: Economic and Commercial Office head Cui Bin of the Chinese Embassy in Qatar; Qatar Chamber deputy general manager Saleh Hamad al-Sharqi; and Gavin, general manager of AJ Exhibition & Events explaining the details of the “Made in China Exhibition 2015.” PICTURE: Shaji Kayamkulam
By Peter Alagos
Business Reporter
China has expanded co-operation for project contracting with Qatar in 2014 by signing more than $8bn worth of contracts in various infrastructure projects, an official of the Chinese Embassy’s Economic and Commercial Office (ECO) said.
ECO head Cui Bin said Chinese companies participating in these projects are involved in Qatar’s civil construction works and the building of roads, bridges, ports, and telecommunications infrastructure.
“Co-operation in the fields of financial services, aviation, and tourism is also processing well, which has become the new highlight of China and Qatar’s economic and trade relationship.
“Qatar has become one of our most important business partners in the Middle East and the Gulf region, Bin said during the launching of the “Made in China Exhibition 2015” at the Qatar Chamber (QC) headquarters in Doha yesterday.
Bin said the exhibition will be held at the Doha Exhibition Centre from December 14 to 16, with 300 Chinese companies participating and around 30,000 guests expected to attend the event.
At the same time, Bin said bilateral trade volume between the two countries reached $10.6bn in 2014.
“Both China and Qatar have a profound traditional friendship. In recent years, the economic and trade co-operation between our two countries has experienced rapid development. The bilateral trade volume has increased sharply from $400mn in 2004 to $10.6bn in 2014, a 26-fold growth in 10 years,” Bin noted.
Citing projects related to the 2022 FIFA World Cup and Qatar National Vision 2030, Bin stressed that the Chinese companies joining the “Made in China Exhibition 2015” would benefit from the event as they expressed “strong interest” to be a part of Qatar’s infrastructure boom.
“Qatar is still expanding its project investments to fulfil its economic and development goals, and this opens many new opportunities for further China-Qatar co-operation,” Bin stressed.
He added, “I hope that the upcoming exhibition will be a new bridge to broaden mutual co-operation, offering convenience and assistance for China’s enterprises and products entering the Qatar market.”
Qatar Chamber deputy general manager Saleh Hamad al-Sharqi said the “Made in China Exhibition 2015” is organised by Qatar Chamber, in co-operation with AJ Exhibitions & Events.
Al-Sharqi said 50% of the event’s 15,000sq m exhibition space has already been booked by major Chinese companies.
“This conference, the first of its kind in Qatar, is committed to provide an excellent exhibition of superior Chinese products, and aims to achieve economic development by enhancing bilateral co-operation between Qatar and China,” said al-Sharqi, who also thanked Sany Heavy Machineries, the major sponsor of the event.
He added, “The objective of the exhibition is not to sell Chinese products but to facilitate trade exchange between Qatar and Chinese companies and exhibitors.”
Al-Sharqi also said delegation composed of 50 Chinese companies is scheduled to visit Qatar next month to meet with their Qatari counterparts “and to support the investment atmosphere of the country.”
Expo to showcase ‘high-quality’ Chinese products
By Peter Alagos
Business Reporter
Qatar Chamber has organised the “Made in China Exhibition 2015” to showcase a variety “high-quality” Chinese products designed to meet the needs of region’s infrastructure and technology sectors.
Gavin, general manager of Qatari-owned AJ Exhibition & Events, which is QC’s partner and contractor for the event, said the exhibition does not only showcase the capabilities of major Chinese companies but also aims to improve public perception of “Made in China” products.
The event is scheduled to be held from December 14 to 16 at the Doha Exhibition Centre and is expected to gather 300 participating companies from China and around 30,000 visitors.
“While there have been ‘Made in China’ exhibitions in Dubai and other countries, our event is different because we will only feature medium and high-quality products.
“The exhibition is not like a bazaar or supermarket. Unfortunately, most people view Chinese products as cheap and substandard, but I want to change that perception through this event,” said Gavin, who spoke to Gulf Times on the sidelines of the press launching of the event held at the QC headquarters yesterday.
Asked about the pricing of the products and its affordability to consumers, he said price competitiveness would be at par with international standards.
“Because the quality of the products showcased in the exhibition range from medium to high, the pricing would be slightly higher than most Chinese brands available in the market. But the prices are still considered competitive when compared to their European counterparts,” Gavin stressed.
He added, “For this exhibition, I plan to provide both Qatari and GCC markets a platform for superior Chinese products but with a reasonable price that does not compromise quality.”
According to Gavin, many companies in China are determined to reverse public perception on inferior and substandard Chinese products, which had permeated most major global markets.
“Despite the fact that most Chinese products have earned a negative reputation of being cheap and low in quality, many companies in China are striving to manufacture world-class products,” Gavin emphasised.
He stressed that the exhibition aims to be different and intends to provide a new perspective towards “Made in China” products, “which is why we got the strong support of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce.”
“To guarantee that there will be no cheating of customers and that all participants in this exhibition will showcase their best products, we have partnered with the Chamber of Commerce Association in China, which selected and screened all the companies that will be joining this event,” he stressed.
During the expo, Gavin said major Chinese companies will showcase smart cities solutions, infrastructure for smart homes, and intelligent building solutions, as well as ICT and electronics products.
“We have selected Qatar because we want Chinese companies to participate in the 2022 FIFA world cup preparations.
“But at the same time, we also want to penetrate the GCC and North African markets, and we believe that Qatar could serve as an important hub for the region’s construction and building sector through this event,” Gavin explained.
