With the 100-day countdown set to begin on Sunday, preparations for the eighth China International Import Expo have been advancing steadily. Officials say this year's expo, which will run from November 5-10 in Shanghai, holds special importance because of the changing international landscape and rising uncertainties in global trade.

During a press briefing on Friday, Wu Zhengping, executive vice-president of the CIIE Bureau, said that more than 50 countries and international organizations have confirmed their participation in the country exhibition of this year's expo. Sweden and the United Arab Emirates will serve as guest countries, while Kyrgyzstan will make its debut at this year's country exhibition.

The business exhibition will be spread over 330,000 square meters of space, with a total of 170 companies and another 27 institutions attending the CIIE for the eighth year running. Canada, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway and Peru are set to have record numbers of companies attending the eighth CIIE.

According to Wu, the themed exhibition for intelligent industry and information technology will see participation from more than 80 Fortune 500 companies and industry leaders, including the world's top 10 industrial electric equipment makers, the largest five elevator companies and four water processing companies.

Leading new material companies, including Sherwin-Williams from the United States and Evonik Industries AG from Germany, will be making their first appearance at this year's CIIE, added Wu.

Ten Fortune 500 pharmaceutical companies, the world's three largest medical imaging companies and three major radiation therapy equipment service providers will take part in the medical equipment and healthcare products exhibition.

Intelligent, safety and sustainability research and development results regarding multi-modal transportation and the low-altitude economy will be showcased at the automobile and smart transportation area.

More than 500 cutting-edge technology projects will be present at the innovation incubation special section, representing a new record. Digital economy, green and low-carbon development, bio-science and manufacturing technologies will be the four major themes of these innovative projects, according to Wu.

For the first time, a special area has been allocated for the least developed countries at the CIIE. The special area for African products, which also featured in previous editions of the expo, will be expanded this year. In this way, companies and products from the least developed countries with diplomatic relations with China, as well as the 53 African countries with diplomatic relations, can effectively use the zero tariff agent policy and better tap into the Chinese market, said Wu.

Expanded collaboration with overseas provinces and states via this year's CIIE will be another highlight. Representatives from Saskatchewan in Canada and Almaty in Kazakhstan will make their CIIE debut.

While products and technologies making their national or global debut have been highlights of the CIIE in the past, special visiting routes will be set up for the first time this year so that visitors can have a better understanding of the featured new products. The capacity for online streaming will be in place to allow exhibitors to broadcast from the CIIE, Wu said.

Meanwhile, a cross-border e-commerce platform for selected products will be introduced for the first time during this year's CIIE, added Wu.

Services for exhibitors will be further improved. E-visas will be provided at ports to CIIE exhibitors for the first time. Bonded exhibition and trading scope will be further expanded under the guidance of the General Administration of Customs, according to Zhu Min, director of Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce.

Costs for taking part in this year's CIIE will be lowered, with the booth construction period shortened and the charges for certain services lowered, added Wu.