Northstar

Destination Shanghai 42 MAY-JUN 2019 MEETINGS & CONVENTIONS MCMAG-ASIA.COM When it comes to China's burgeoning economy, good things don't last forever — and there are some not insignicant tell-tale signs. For example, China saw a 6.6% economic growth in 2018, the country's slowest growth since 1990. However, Shanghai seems unfazed, at least judging by the city's MICE activities in the past year. Standing strong According to statistics from the Shanghai Convention and Exhibition Industry Association, Shanghai held a total of 994 MICE-related events, which cumulatively took up a total area of 19 million square metres. In terms of growth, the number of events increased by 18.05% and the total area by 8.04% on a year-on-year basis. And the events held in Shanghai come with quite the reputation, too. Most notable of which was the rst China International Import Expo (CIIE), held at the National Exhibition A favourable outlook Between 2016 and 2018, the total scale of the Shanghai convention and exhibition industry grew at an average annual rate of 9%. In 2019, as long as the growth rate exceeds 5%, the target mapped out in China's 13th Five-Year Plan will be achieved ahead of time. Jacqueline Wang, deputy general manager of Umice (Beijing) International Travel Services, added, "MICE activities have become one of the main drivers of economic development, especially for various non-government related markets, such as nance, IT, education and automobile. As these industries become more mature, exhibitions and conferences will be in even better positions to facilitate business development." National Exhibition and Convention Center. and Convention Center (NECC) in November 2018. The event brought together more than 3,000 foreign companies from 130 countries, oering them a platform to link up with 400,000 potential buyers from the world's second biggest economy. With the exhibition area hitting 300,000sqm at the NECC, the inaugural CIIE was China's largest, most extensive event in 2018. Despite the blockbuster year, according to a 2018 Shanghai Convention and Exhibition Industry report, Shanghai saw a slight decrease in the amount of available event spaces among the top nine venues. However, the number of events and total utilised area at the top nine venues doubled in 2018 by 27% and 10% respectively. Overall, the top three busiest venues in Shanghai were Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center (at 149 events), Shanghai New International Expo Center (at 144 events) and NECC (at 111 events). From big venues to even bigger events, 2018 was a great year for MICE activities for Shanghai — and the numbers show. WORDS WILL CHIN Shanghai Rises "MICE activities have become one of the main become one of the main drivers of economic development, especially for various non- government related markets, such as finance, IT, education and automobile. " JACQUELINE WANG, DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER OF UMICE BEIJING INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL SERVICES SERVICES

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