Buyers negotiate for cooperation at Homa's exhibition zone at the Canton Fair. (Photo/Wen Bo)

Phase 1 of the 133rd Canton Fair, which focused on manufacturing, ended on April 19. With a grand gathering of merchants, the fair attracted over 1.25 million visitors in five days.

The Phase 1 exhibition included 20 exhibition areas covering such sectors as home appliances, machinery, building materials and hardware & tools, which were also Zhongshan's traditional competitive manufacturing sectors.

"It's really great to see a boom in orders every day!" Zhang Zhou, marketing manager of the Microwave Oven Division of Donlim Weili, said in excitement. According to preliminary statistics, the company received over 80 million yuan worth of intended orders these five days, and air-fried microwave ovens were most popular.

"We received nearly 200 buyers from more than 50 countries and regions in five days, which were mostly new clients. They mainly came from the Middle East, the Commonwealth of Independent States and Latin America," said Han Xingzai, general manager of the International Division of OPPLE Lighting. The company has taken an active part in global exhibitions since the beginning of this year, such as those in Dubai and the Philippines. The company's overseas branches see rapid development as well.