CHONGQING (CQNEWS) -- “One more pickled mustard coffee!” “The Liangping pomelo is delicious. I want to bring some home to share them with my daughter.” “Changan intelligent connected NEVs are awesome!” In recent days, a group of visitors of different races and colors were amazed by Chongqing.

The ‘China, an Opportunity: Chongqing Brands Global Promotion’ started on May 16. As part of the event, the ambassadors from Argentina, Cambodia, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, and Pakistan, and the minister and counselors from Germany, Serbia, and Singapore visited Chongqing to gain an insight into the manufacturing industry of Chongqing, taste the good foods in Chongqing, and experience the charm of Chongqing culture.

The 2024 Land-Sea Economic Forum kicked off on May 18, attracting more than 200 guests from over 20 countries engaged in different fields, such as envoys to China, think tank experts, famous entrepreneurs, financial media, and the representatives of Chongqing overseas enterprises to share insights on helping Chongqing enterprises and "Chongqing-made" products go global. On the same day, the ‘China, an Opportunity: Chongqing Brands Global Promotion’ started. To promote Chongqing-made products and help Chongqing enterprises go global, the promotion activity will continue throughout the year.

As a platform for Chongqing enterprises to attract international clients and go global, the ‘China, an Opportunity: Chongqing Brands Global Promotion’ increases the global visibility of ‘Made in Chongqing’.

Attracting international clients

Diplomatic envoys from nine countries awed by Chongqing

As part of the ‘China, an Opportunity: Chongqing Brands Global Promotion’, the diplomatic envoys from nine countries visited the Inland International Logistics Hub Exhibition Center and Haifu Science and Technology Park to witness Chongqing's achievements in international trade and the development of Chongqing's science and technology.

In the Inland International Logistics Hub Exhibition Center, the envoys visited eight display sections, such as the development of the pening-uppolicy, the hub cities, the hub passages, the hub stations, and the hub ports, to have a detailed understanding of Chongqing’s transformation into an inland city with a new height of openness from an inland hinterland. They also watched a movie about the highly efficient transport offered by China-Europe Railway Express trains and the New Western Land-sea Corridor in the 5D flight cinema.

On May 16, NEVs and a series of latest scientific and technological achievements were unveiled in Changan Automobile Global R&D Center on May 16, including the electric digital platform and the central computing platform with a high calculation power.

After experiencing and test-driving several new vehicle models, the envoys were unstinting in their praise. “It's so comfortable!” Bishnu Shrestha, the ambassador to China from Nepal, was full of praise. Salvador Moncada, the ambassador to China from Honduras, said excitingly, “It is full of cutting-edge technologies.”

In recent years, more and more Chongqing cars have been exported. From January to March, the overseas sales of the self-owned brands of Changan Auto reached 108,900, an increase of 80.10% year-on-year; SERES successfully opened its markets in Germany and France, with its export price rising dramatically from US $5,000 to US $40,000 to US $60,000; SAIC Hongyan's sales in Indonesia increased by 205%; and Shineray Automobile sold its products to nearly 50 countries around the world, with exports accounting for nearly 90% of the total sales.

During the visit to Chongqing, the envoys also visited the Chongqing Planning Exhibition Gallery, Shancheng Lane, Liangping, Fuling, and other places. In Liangping, they tasted pomelo tea, pomelo wine, pomelo fruit, and other special processed products and marveled at the high-quality development of Chongqing's agriculture. In Fuling, they learned about the creative pickled mustard coffee products and witnessed the digital production of traditional Chinese medicine.

This is not the first time that international guests have been amazed by Chongqing. In March last year, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs arranged a three-day visit to Chongqing for a delegation of envoys from Portugal, Albania, Laos, Nigeria, and other countries, during which there were many good stories and the envoys praised Chongqing for providing a broad space for opening-up and cooperation.

From a small packet of pickled mustard to a city of rivers, Chongqing brands are increasingly attractive as the construction of a new inland area with high openness continues to accelerate.

Showing our strengths

The first six Chongqing brands promoted globally

After finishing his undergraduate studies in Benin, African boy Chen Di took two years to be admitted to the master’s degree program in Road and Railway Engineering at Chongqing Jiaotong University. “There is an urgent need for talents in the field of road and railway engineering in my hometown.” As Chongqing has become a preferred city for further education overseas, the number of international students from more than 130 countries amounted to nearly 8,000 in Chongqing last year.

During the ‘China, an Opportunity: Chongqing Brands Global Promotion’ starting on May 18, ‘Study Abroad in Chongqing’ is one of the first six Chongqing brands to be promoted to the world. These brands also include ‘The International Communication Center of Central and Western China’, ‘Invest in Chongqing’, ‘Made-in-Chongqing Vehicles’, ‘Good Foods in Chongqing’, and ‘Natural Landscapes in Chongqing’.

To step up the construction of the International Communication Center of Central and Western China, Chongqing has hosted the first ‘Belt and Road’ Science and Technology Exchange Conference, the Ninth China-Russia Youth Games, and other major foreign affairs activities; the New Western Land-sea Corridor has accessed to 490 ports in 120 countries around the world, with the number of China-Europe Railway Express (Chengdu-Chongqing) trains exceeding 15,000; the number of Chongqing’s international friendship cities and friendly exchange cities has increased to 54 and 126 respectively; the number of foreign consular offices in Chongqing has increased to 12; and Chongqing's international popularity and reputation have been rapidly enhanced.

In recent years, Chongqing has accelerated the construction of an inland city with a new height of openness, formulated a special action plan to attract foreign investments, and further optimized the business environment for foreign investments. These efforts have achieved positive results, with foreign investment projects worth 64.3 billion yuan signed in 2023.

In terms of ‘Chongqing-made vehicles’, Changan Auto and SERES have broken new ground in digital and intelligent new vehicles, and vehicle brands such as Avatr, Deep Blue, and AITO have built their reputations. By the end of 2023, Chongqing has been home to 20 vehicle manufacturers, which include Changan, SAIC, Dongfeng Motor, Geely, Great Wall Motor, and other leading Chinese vehicle manufacturers, with their product categories covering light and heavy vehicles, passenger vehicles, microcars and sedans, as well as a full range of new energy vehicle technology for purely electric vehicles, plug-in rechargeable vehicles, programmable vehicles, hydrogen vehicles, and battery-swapping vehicles.

Chongqing has also stepped up efforts to promote the spicy Chongqing hot pot globally. It is estimated that Chongqing hotpot enterprises have opened more than 200 overseas shops in more than 20 countries and regions. The producers of Fengjie navel oranges and Tongnan lemons have continued to develop their overseas markets, and the specialty products with Chongqing characteristics, such as Fuling mustard, Wushan crisp plums, and Wuxi eagle tea, were widely sold in China.

In terms of ‘Natural Landscapes in Chongqing’, Chongqing is well-known as the City of Mountains, the City of Rivers, the City that Never Sleeps, the Bridge City, the Hot Springs City, the City of Design, the fastest-growing tourism city in the world, one of the top ten tourist destinations with the most development potential in the world, one of the top ten tourist destinations in the world, and the most tourist-friendly city. (Translated by Yuki, Fathom Language Limited)