China International SME Fair kicks off in Guangzhou
Updated 16:41, 14-Oct-2018
By CGTN's Sun Ye, Zhang Jiahua
["china"]
02:22
The 15th China International Small and Medium Enterprises Fair kicked off Wednesday in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province. Long seen as a barometer for economic vitality, more than 3,000 companies from across the world took part in the annual gathering.
The United Arab Emirates, the guest of honor, brought a delegation of companies ranging from food processing to data mining.
Abdulla Ahmed Al Saleh, undersecretary for foreign trade of the UAE Ministry of Economy, told CGTN that the group is looking for tremendous co-operational opportunities with China.
"UAE is diversifying. We see huge potential for cooperation with China," he said, "From Internet of things, 3D printing, to block-chain technology, we hope to experience it here."
Only experiencing China for the first time, the UAE's Stairway Consultancy, which uses big data in company analysis, decided the world's largest economy should be its biggest overseas foothold.
"China has a huge market, it's a leader in artificial intelligence, it has funding. Business here will take my company to the next level," said Yousuf Al Sereidi, managing partner with the consulting company. 
Stairway Consultancy‘s Yousuf Al Sereidi at the China International SME Fair. /CGTN Photo

Stairway Consultancy‘s Yousuf Al Sereidi at the China International SME Fair. /CGTN Photo

Domestic companies at the SMEs fair also say they are going all in for the next "it" thing.
Danditec, a company based in Shanghai, is showcased its chip antennae and chips at the event. The chips are just a fraction of the size of the ones people are used to, and in some cases, one-fortieth of the traditional ones.
Danditec's Li Jun at the China Int'l SME Fair /CGTN Photo

Danditec's Li Jun at the China Int'l SME Fair /CGTN Photo

Li Jun, CEO of the company, said their product, while new, is a sure-win.
"By 2028, this could be a market in need of 3 billion sets of such small positioning chips in China alone. We are far from that figure now. And a lot of people have shown interest."
He said the only worry he has is securing enough investment so the production can go into scale.
SMEs like Li's are responsible for 70 percent of all technological breakthroughs in China, according to the latest figure by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), which is behind the SMEs fair now in its 15th edition.
Wang Jiangping, vice minister of industry and information technology, visits the fair. /Photo from MIIT

Wang Jiangping, vice minister of industry and information technology, visits the fair. /Photo from MIIT

"SMEs are growing steadily. We continue to see high entrepreneurial spirits, with more than 52,000 new companies set up every day. We also expect those in the high-tech sector to see the biggest growth in the near future," said Wang Jiangping, vice minister of MIIT.
Wang also told CGTN that as many SMEs are looking to secure investment, new targeted policies are now in discussion.