It is believed that the second China International Import Expo (CIIE) will only become better.

The second CIIE, based on the success of its inaugural version last year, is bound to become a greater success. Compared with the first CIIE, the second session has expanded its exhibition area, and is also seeing more participating Fortune Global 500 enterprises, industry leading companies, and buyers.

(Photo/Xinhua）

The second expo has expanded exhibition area to 330,000 square meters, 60,000 square meters larger than that of the last year, according to Ren Hongbin, assistant minister of commerce and deputy director of the CIIE’s organizing committee office. Although twice extended, the exhibition area can still hardly meet the huge booth demands, Ren said.

The exhibition area of medical equipment and health care products has been expanded by 15,000 square meters. All the booths had been booked by the end of March, three months before the planned schedule, said Wu Jun, an executive in charge of the exhibition area of medical equipment and health care products.

At last year’s CIIE, Medtronic, a medical technology specialist from the United States, presented the Micra Transcatheter Pacing System, the world's smallest pacemaker. The product became a hit at the event. In just six months, the device was authorized to enter the Chinese market under the special approval channel of China’s National Medical Products Administration.

“The CIIE connects us with users from remote areas of China, and boosts our confidence to continue explore the Chinese market,” said Martin Zhou, Manager of Public Relations Department of Medtronic Greater China.

The company will present nearly 50 advanced medical technologies and products at the second CIIE, some of which will be showcased for the first time in China and even the world. They cover multiple areas such as intelligent surgery, neurosurgery and spine surgery.

Thanks to the opening- up of China’s medical industry and the reform on drug approval, many “star products” at the first CIIE entered the Chinese market at a faster pace.

Alecesna, a lung cancer drug by Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche was approved by China just nine months after it gained approval in the United States. Novo Nordisk, a global pharmaceutical company known for its diabetes drugs, had one of its insulin products put on the list of drugs covered by China’s medical insurance less than one year after the product was approved.

Through the CIIE, more and more high-end products, such as French wine, Russian dairy products, and coffee from South America are available in China. The second CIIE will for the first time establish a high-end consumer product display area, with the aim of satisfying the upgrading needs of the Chinese consumers and fostering new business opportunities for enterprises from the around the world to enter the Chinese market.

In the past year, 137 exhibitors launched new companies or offices in Pudong, Shanghai, and many Chinese enterprises have improved their competitiveness through introducing technologies and equipment displayed at the first CIIE, according to China’s Ministry of Commerce.

Since this year, Shanghai has further enlarged the spillover effects of the CIIE. The city announced 30 measures to attract multinational corporations to set their headquarters there, 40 measures to open up the service industry, and 26 measures to facilitate foreign investment, quickening the steps to build itself into a magnet for foreign investment.