The 4th Automechanika Shanghai Expands Due to Overwhelming Demand

The 2008 Automechanika Shanghai, the world's second-largest Automechanika series, is scheduled for December 10-12 at the Shanghai New International Expo Center.

To meet overwhelming demand from exhibitors, the organizer this year will be expanding the venue to 80,500 square meters, an increase of 29,500 square meters from last year. This reconfirms Automechanika Shanghai as one of China's leading trade shows for the automotive parts, components and aftermarket industry.

Buyers can expect to see in Shanghai a complete range of products for automotive original and aftermarket applications, from low to high-end and from basic to hi-tech. True to the brand profile of Automechanika, products to be displayed will be parts & systems, accessories & tuning, repair & maintenance, IT & management, and service station & car wash.

Record Attendance in 2007

In 2007, the fair set an attendance record with more than 22,000 visitors from 103 countries, of whom nearly one quarter or an impressive 5,287 came from overseas. "With more than 1,600 exhibitors from 17 countries for this year's Shanghai show we have already surpassed our 2007 figure of 1,250 exhibitors," said Fiona Chiew, group manager of Trade Fairs of Messe Frankfurt Hong Kong.

"We expect a final figure of 1,800 exhibitors, spread over eight halls and more than 30,000 visitors to turn up this year," Chiew said. "This reflects the tremendous interest in China's automobile industry and its automotive parts, equipment and service supplier sector."

For domestic and international buyers, Automechanika Shanghai is an important sourcing venue, while for exhibitors it is an opportunity to boost sales, gain exposure, learn how the Chinese corporate culture works, as well as meet potential Chinese partners.

According to the General Administration of Customs figures, China's auto imports and exports for 2007 reached US$66.9 billion, with exports up 45.31% and imports up 24.45%. In addition, figures from the National Development and Reform Commission, China's top economic planner, reveals that Chinese automakers rolled out 9.04 million vehicles in 2007, up 22.9% from the previous year. In 2008, China's output is expected to exceed 10 million units, of which five million will be passenger cars.

Promising Track Record

In the last five years, China's export of auto parts has increased more than six times, making it one of the country's fastest-growing export categories. Up until a few years ago, large-scale auto parts production was only possible in North America, Europe and Japan. Now more than half of China's auto parts are exported to the United States and the remainder to Europe and Japan. The strength of China's auto parts sector is backed by its capability in electrical and electronic components and cast-metal parts, which are labor intensive and hazardous.

In contrast, an expanding market has stimulated the need for more imported parts: According to statistics from China Customs, China imported US$7.2 billion in auto parts in the first half of 2007. In the same period, the import value of engines rose 16.43% to US$697 million and imported transmissions soared 66% to US$1.4 billion,

Automechanika Shanghai, one of the 13 Automechanika trade fairs globally, is organized by Messe Frankfurt in partnership with the China National Automotive Industry International Corporation (CNAICO). For further information, please visit www.automechanika.messefrankfurt.com

e-mail:auto@hongkong.messefrankfurt.com.