Most Taiwan counties attend the 10th Cross-Straits Fair for Economy and Trade, according to organizers in Fuzhou City, East China's Fujian Province, at the opening ceremony on Saturday.

"Last year, in addition to Taipei county, there were six counties from central part of Taiwan Province attended the fair, and this year, the counties represented have expanded to nearly the whole island including North Taiwan, South Taiwan, and East Taiwan, such as Kaohsiung County and Tai-nan County," said the organizers, adding 20 key industrial groups are from Taiwan Province.

"This is the second time I have attended the cross-Straits fair, and this year's fair is bigger than last year's," said Lin Fong-cheng, vice-president of Kuomintang, in an interview at the meeting. "I believe the cross-Straits fair will get better and better."

Ching-Hsiao Huang, director-general with the department of economic development from the Taichung city government, said seven enterprises joined his group to attend the fair. "This is my first time, and I am quite impressed," he said.

He said their trade with the Chinese mainland is mainly in the areas of food and biotechnology, as well as investments in chemistry. "If direct flights are available between Taiwan and the Chinese mainland, there will be more investment and the trade categories will expand to other fields," he said.

At the fair, there are exhibition halls including the Taiwan city image pavilion and a cross-Straits light electric and mechanical products pavilion, where are most people congregated.

The Fuzhou government will hold a cross-Straits economy and trade summit and economy development summit to enhance cooperation on trade, culture, education and tourism between Taiwan Province and the Chinese mainland.

Co-hosted by the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, China Customs, General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, and Fujian provincial government, the fair attracted more than 10,000 delegates from 31 countries including India, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Thailand.

The fair has become one of the largest cross-Straits fairs over ten years of development, and it has attracted $10 billion in investment and more than 1,000 key projects have been put into production over the past decade.

(Chinadaily.com.cn May 19, 2008)