South and Southeast Asia Commodity Expo and Investment Fair Held

The 2017 South and Southeast Asia Commodity Expo and Investment Fair （SSACEIF） kicked off in Kunming， the capital of Yunnan Province in southwestern China. Themed as \"Jointly Creating New Opportunities and Seeking New Development，\" the expo and fair focused on exhibiting commodities from South and Southeast Asian countries， facilitating cooperative negotiations between China and those countries and offering a platform for enhancing multilateral diplomacy， economic ties and cultural exchanges.

As Yunnan is located near countries of both South and Southeast Asia and both sides have a long history of economic and cultural exchanges， the event is expected to promote the construction of the Belt and Road Initiative， cooperation within the Lancang-Mekong Sub-region and the construction of the China-Indochina Peninsula Economic Corridor and the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor， said Chen Hao， secretary of the CPC Yunnan Provincial Committee and chairman of the Standing Committee of the Yunnan Provincial People's Congress.

Jointly sponsored by the China Chamber of International Commerce， Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation， China-ASEAN Center and Secretariat of the China-South Asia Expo， the event lasted seven days. Pakistan and Laos were the theme country and guest of honor， respectively.

The event included 17 exhibition halls and more than 8，000 booths at the Dianchi International Conference and Exhibition Center. A total of 86 countries and regions and over 4，000 enterprises attended the event. Foreign enterprises accounted for 41.2 percent of those attending.