The 2023 China International Rail Transit and Equipment Manufacturing Industry Exposition opened in Zhuzhou city, central China's Hunan Province, on Dec. 8, 2023.

The expo, themed "Smart Rail Links to the Future," is co-hosted by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) and the provincial government of Hunan.

With a total exhibition area of more than 60,000 square meters, the expo is being attended by over 600 enterprises online and offline. It includes a series of side events such as parallel forums, business negotiations, technical exchanges, a talent summit, professional competitions, site visits and open days.

The 2023 China International Rail Transit and Equipment Manufacturing Industry Exposition opens in Zhuzhou city, central China's Hunan Province, on Dec. 8, 2023. (People's Daily Online/Liu Bin)

CCPIT president Ren Hongbin said the CCPIT fully supports Hunan's commitment to achieving high-level opening-up and high-quality development.

CCPIT will give full play to its role as a facilitator between governments and enterprises, between domestic and international markets, and between supply and demand, Ren said.

The 2023 China International Rail Transit and Equipment Manufacturing Industry Exposition opens in Zhuzhou city, central China's Hunan Province, on Dec. 8, 2023. (People's Daily Online/Liu Bin)

Zhuzhou has established the most comprehensive industrial chain system in the country for the rail transit and equipment manufacturing industry.

Chen Yun, chairman of China Railway Group Limited (CREC), noted that CREC, as the main force and a pioneer driving the development of China's rail transit industry, enjoys a solid foundation for cooperation with Hunan Province.

He said CREC will further expand its presence in the province and make its contribution to Hunan's high-quality development.

Photo shows trains on display during the opening ceremony of the 2023 China International Rail Transit and Equipment Manufacturing Industry Exposition. (People's Daily Online/Liu Bin)

Following the opening ceremony, the World Rail Transit Xiangjiang Forum opened. Academicians of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, including Lu Chunfang and Ding Rongjun, deputy head of the China Association of Metros Ding Shukui, deputy director of the China Center for Information Industry Development Liu Wenqiang, president at Wabtec China Cui Yao, and commercial counselor with the Colombian Embassy in China Oscar Felipe Rueda Plata, delivered keynote speeches.

Source: People's Daily