Overview of Shanghai's Convention and Exhibition Industry in 2018
In 2018, the first China International Import Expo was successfully held, and Shanghai's convention and exhibition industry continued to grow steadily. According to statistics from the Shanghai Convention and Exhibition Industries Association, Shanghai held 994 international and domestic exhibitions, meetings and events, with a total area of 19.0631 million square meters. The number increased by 18.05 percent year on year, mainly because the number of meetings and events increased, and total area increased by 8.04 percent. At this pace of growth, the scale target in Shanghai's convention and exhibition industry plan for the 13th Five-Year Plan period will be achieved ahead of schedule.
The specific development of Shanghai's convention and exhibition industry in 2018 was as follows.
I. Exhibitions, meetings and events
Relationship chart of Shanghai exhibitions, meetings and events in 2018.
1. Meetings and events
In 2018, the nine major venues further diversified their development. Together they hosted 268 meetings and events with a total area of 1.9394 million square meters, almost double the meeting and event area in 2017. Their number and area accounted for 26.96 percent and 10.17 percent respectively of Shanghai's total convention and exhibition industry.
2. Exhibitions
In 2018, Shanghai held 726 exhibition projects with a total exhibition area of 17.1237 million square meters. Among them, 292 were international exhibition projects with a total exhibition area of 13.4718 million square meters, accounting for 40.22 percent of the number and 78.67 percent of the area. There were 434 domestic exhibition projects with a total exhibition area of 3.6519 million square meters, accounting for 59.78 percent of the number and 21.33 percent of the area.
The nine major venues hosted 503 exhibition projects with a total exhibition area of 16.0918 million square meters. The number decreased by 10.34 percent from the previous year, while the area increased by 4.19 percent.
II. Venues
In 2018, Shanghai's major venues remained generally unchanged. After a slight decrease in 2017, the total area still stood at about 750,000 square meters. It is worth noting that Shanghai New International Expo Centre will put temporary venues into use in 2019.
III. Successful holding of the China International Import Expo
The first China International Import Expo attracted worldwide attention and became an important platform for China's new round of opening-up. The first CIIE attracted 172 countries, regions and international organizations, more than 3,600 exhibitors, and over 400,000 domestic and overseas buyers for procurement negotiations. Its exhibition area reached 300,000 square meters. It was China's largest and broadest host-country diplomatic event in 2018 in terms of participating countries, and was a major innovation in the history of international expos in both scale and quality. It helped promote high-quality economic development and a new stage of opening-up in China.
IV. Development characteristics of Shanghai's exhibition industry in 2018
1. Industry scale grew steadily, and the 13th Five-Year Plan scale target is expected to be achieved ahead of schedule.
From 2016 to 2018, the total scale of Shanghai's convention and exhibition industry increased from 16.048 million square meters to 19.0631 million square meters, with an average annual growth rate of 9 percent. In 2019, as long as the growth rate exceeds 5 percent, the target of 20 million square meters for the 13th Five-Year Plan period can be achieved ahead of schedule. If 2019 and 2020 are both calculated at a conservative annual growth rate of 5 percent, Shanghai's convention and exhibition industry will exceed 21 million square meters by the end of 2020.
2. The trend toward larger exhibitions became clear, and large venues were more favored by exhibitions.
In 2018, the 503 exhibitions hosted by the nine major venues had an average exhibition area of 32,000 square meters, an increase of 16.36 percent from 27,500 square meters in the previous year. There were 42 exhibitions above 100,000 square meters, with a combined exhibition area of 8.0114 million square meters. Large exhibitions above 100,000 square meters accounted for nearly 50 percent of total scale.
Shanghai New International Expo Centre, the National Exhibition and Convention Center, and Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center, the three major venues in Shanghai, hosted 278 exhibitions in 2018 with a total exhibition area of 14.3016 million square meters, accounting for 88.88 percent of the total exhibition area of the nine major venues. The rental rates of Shanghai New International Expo Centre and Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center were the highest, both above 50 percent. The National Exhibition and Convention Center had the fastest growth in rented area, increasing by 690,400 square meters, with a growth rate of 14.16 percent.
3. Beyond exhibitions, venues diversified operations, and the share of meetings and events increased.
In 2018, venues further differentiated their operations and diversified into exhibitions, meetings and events. The National Exhibition and Convention Center hosted 66 meetings and events in 2018 with a combined area of 899,600 square meters, the largest meeting and event area among venues. Some small and medium-sized venues saw exhibition area decline but meeting and event area increase substantially. Shanghai Convention and Exhibition Center of International Sourcing had the highest share of meetings and events, hosting 62 events with a combined area of 270,100 square meters and an area share of 57.8 percent. Shanghai Automobile Exhibition Center also had a meeting and event area share above 50 percent.
