CIIE (China International Import Expo) is the world's only import-focused fair, established in 2018 on the initiative of Chinese President Xi Jinping. While other fairs promote China's exports, CIIE's purpose is the opposite — to bring foreign producers wishing to import into China together with Chinese buyers. With this characteristic, CIIE offers an unrivaled model worldwide.
The 2026 edition takes place November 5–10 at Shanghai's National Exhibition and Convention Center (NECC, the world's largest fair venue). 4,000+ international exhibitors and 500,000+ professional visitors are expected. China's largest 50 retail chains, e-commerce platforms and import companies make purchasing decisions here.
Why is CIIE Important for Turkish Exporters?
China is the world's second-largest consumer market (approximately $6.5 trillion in retail). Turkish-Chinese trade volume has doubled in the last five years, but the export-import balance still shows a serious deficit in China's favor. CIIE is at the center of the strategy for Turkish firms to close this gap.
Categories where Turkey is strong at CIIE: dry food (nuts, hazelnuts, dried fruits), cosmetics (especially organic and boutique brands), textiles (high-quality home textiles, carpets), olive oil, machinery and machine tools, electronics accessories. China's growing middle class spends serious money on imported premium products — a natural niche for Turkish brands.
Chinese Government Support: What Sets CIIE Apart
CIIE is directly organized by China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) and Shanghai Municipality. This gives the fair a unique advantage: China's major retail chains (Sun Art, Yonghui, Hema, Sam's Club, Alibaba Tmall Global, JD.com) attend with authorized procurement teams, and MOFCOM provides incentive credits for contracts signed at the fair.
Total contracts signed at CIIE 2024 exceeded $80 billion. For foreign exhibitors, this means a 5-10 times higher conversion rate compared to regular Chinese commercial fairs.
Exhibition Areas and Categories
CIIE is divided into six main exhibition areas: Food & Agricultural Products (Hall 1.1), Automobile (Hall 2.1), Intelligent Industry & Information Technology (Hall 4.1), Consumer Goods (Halls 5.1, 6.1, 7.1), Medical Equipment & Healthcare Products (Hall 7.2), Trade in Services (Hall 8.1). Turkish firms concentrate most in Consumer Goods and Food & Agricultural Products.
The Country Pavilion area (Hall 0) is the official area allocated to each country. Turkey opened a 600 m² pavilion in this area in 2024; a larger area is planned for 2026.
