Phase one of the 133rd session the China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, concluded on Wednesday in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province. 

Over the past five days, the event surprised participants with various new records: buyers from 229 countries and regions, more than 1.25 million visitors, and nearly 13,000 exhibitors with over 800,000 exhibits. 

Items that were on display during phase one included electronics and home appliances, lighting, vehicles and accessories, machinery, hardware tools, building materials, chemical products, and energy. 

The home appliance exhibition area, consumer electronics and information product exhibition area lead in transaction volume, and buyers from countries and regions along the "Belt and Road" accounted for more than half, China Media Group reported on Wednesday.

The long-standing Canton Fair will run until May 5. Phase two will take place from April 23 to 27 featuring exhibits of daily consumer goods, gifts, and home decoration, while phase three will see products including textile and clothing, footwear, office, luggage, medicine and health care, and food on display from May 1 to 5.  

Launched in 1957 and held twice yearly, the fair is considered a major gauge of China's foreign trade.

Trade picks up

Local customs authorities said Tuesday that Guangdong saw its foreign trade reach 1.84 trillion yuan (about $267 billion) in the first quarter of 2023.

During the period, the province's exports climbed 6.2 percent year on year to 1.22 trillion yuan.

Notably, Guangdong's total export and import value reversed earlier declines and started to grow by 3.9 percent year on year in February. In March, its foreign trade grew 25.7 percent year on year.

Guangdong's Q1 foreign trade demonstrates the strong resilience and vitality of the province's economy, laying the foundation for achieving its annual growth target, said Wen Zhencai, an official with the Guangdong branch of the General Administration of Customs.

As China's leading foreign trade player, Guangdong has set a foreign trade growth target of 3 percent for 2023.

(With input from Xinhua)