A delegation poses for a group photo before departing for the 2023 Overseas Hangzhou Vietnam exhibition. [Photo/WeChat account: zhelihangzhou]

Hangzhou is leading China's latest wave of international trade expansion, as more than 3,500 companies sign up for the Overseas Hangzhou global exhibition platform.

Major events are scheduled for May and June in Vietnam, Indonesia, and the United Arab Emirates, covering a combined 70,000 square meters of exhibition space.

All booths for the Vietnam and UAE shows are fully booked, while limited spaces remain for the Indonesia event. The exhibitions have attracted companies from 11 provinces, including Zhejiang, Guangdong, Jiangsu, and Shandong, marking Hangzhou's largest outbound trade initiative since the rise of global trade protectionism.

Cutting-edge tech is a major focus, with exhibitors including AI and robotics firms like Libiao Robotics, which has deployed over 60,000 smart sorting robots globally, and Shanghai-based Ti5robot Technology, known for humanoid robots capable of performing complex factory tasks.

Debuting at the Vietnam show is an AI-powered smart glasses system developed by Hangzhou-based LAWK. Designed to enhance business matchmaking, it features real-time translation, conversation generation, and facial recognition to streamline client identification and communication.

Overseas Hangzhou, backed by the Hangzhou municipal government, has grown into China's largest outbound exhibition platform. In 2023, its exhibition area accounted for nearly one-fourth of the nation's total independently organized overseas trade show space. In the first quarter of 2024, its order conversions represented 51 percent of Zhejiang's growth in exports to emerging markets.

To further support exporters, Hangzhou plans to launch a Digital Foreign Trade Alliance for the Hangzhou metropolitan area, integrating government, academia, and the private sector to deliver policy support, tech tools, and market expansion services.

Amid global trade uncertainties, Hangzhou remains committed to helping businesses go global, diversify markets, and weather economic challenges together.

The 2022 Overseas Hangzhou Dubai exhibition gains widespread attention from the media. [Photo/WeChat account: hangzhoushangwu]