More than 800 IT companies including Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, India, Taiwan and Hong Kong, have brought electronic products, software, communication, integrate circuits, information services, digital entertainment and other relevant technologies and products to the fair.

Activities during the four-day fair include a ministerial summit on international IT cooperation, an annual meeting on software outsourcing, an international IT job fair, and a symposium on IT personnel training that will help to enhance exchanges between software developers and consumers.

Chinese Minister of Commerce Bo Xilai said at the opening ceremony that China is not only good at making textile products and shoes, "it will also bring a new surprise to the world in the IT sector."

Although sharing a small portion in the world IT market, China's IT industry is growing at a fast speed and boasts great potential, Bo said.

The minister said the Chinese government pays much attention to the development of the sector and will continue its efforts to create a favorable environment for its growth.

He also called for a balanced development between software and hardware industries, which are inseparable and complementary to each other.

Dalian, one of China's major software production and export bases, has more than 200 software companies, one quarter of which are foreign like Nokia, Ericsson and General Electrics.

The city registered a software export turnover of US$54.2 million in 2004, up 73 percent year-on-year, with Japan as its biggest trade partner. 

(Xinhua News Agency June 24, 2005)