The 9th CIIE's Cultural Exchange Exhibition Area Reaches a New Record Scale

The 9th China International Import Expo was held in Shanghai from November 5 to 10, 2026, attracting participation from 162 countries, regions, and international organizations, with 4,142 overseas enterprises exhibiting, and the overall exhibition area exceeding 440,000 square meters for the first time. This year's CIIE cultural exchange exhibition activities set up 60 booths with an exhibition area of over 40,000 square meters, the largest scale in the event's history, attracting exhibitors from 31 provincial-level regions and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps in China, as well as 2 overseas friendship provinces and cities. Guizhou's "Village T" brought a display integrating ethnic culture and fashion, with nearly 100,000 ordinary people having participated in the runway shows; Barcelona, Spain made its debut in the Charming Friendship City Zone, and this year marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of friendly-city relations between Shanghai and Barcelona. The event introduced the "Intangible Cultural Heritage Workshop" exhibition area for the first time, centrally presenting the construction achievements of intangible cultural heritage workshops in Guizhou, Jiangsu, Hunan, Yunnan, and other places. Shanghai simultaneously launched 19 "CIIE Exclusive" premium tourism routes and an AI travel agent, extending the exhibition itinerary into an urban cultural experience. Subsequent reports show that during the CIIE, Shanghai also launched 54 distinctive investment visit and inspection routes, and Bank of China set up 6 centralized "buy and refund immediately" departure tax refund points; InterContinental Hotels Group's Greater China opened hotels reached one thousand, and Marriott International will welcome its 800th opened hotel at the end of the month.