Hong Kong Building and Decoration Materials & Hardware Fair: New synergy provides good growth

Sept. 28, 2008 - PRLog -- The 3rd edition of the Hong Kong International Building and Decoration Materials & Hardware Fair is certain to provide a more effective sourcing platform for exhibitors and buyers as it combines the highly successful Hong Kong International Building Materials & Construction Equipment Fair with the equally popular Hong Kong International Hardware & Home Improvement Fair. The fair is organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and CIEC Exhibition Company (HK) Ltd (CIEC) and will be held from 28 – 31 October at AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong.

The 2008 fair is on a larger scale, expected to bring 300 quality exhibitors from around the world, showing a wide range of products including building materials, decorative materials, hardware & DIY products, bathroom fittings & sanitary ware, door/window and accessories, building technology, safety and security system, building engineering & service as well as lawn and yard products.

Major exhibitors have confirmed their participation in the 2008 fair. They include Hong Kong’s Year Full Group Holdings Limited, which specialises in bamboo flooring, outdoor decking, bamboo veneer and furniture, and Wls (Oversea Projects) Limited which mainly produces stone, tiles and building materials; Malaysia’s EOS Industries, which produces aluminum ladders; Austria’s Josef Krenn GmbH, which focuses on hardware tools; and wallpaper supplier Eastern Arts Yuemei from USA.

Buyers from both mature and emerging markets will find the fair an effective sourcing platform. During the 2007 fair, Kevin Goss, Category Manager of Australia’s Bunnings Group Limited, expressed his appreciation of the event. “We are the largest hardware chain in Australia with 155 warehouses and 70 stores. What we’ve found is that Hong Kong is the driver of innovation. This is where we see new trends coming through. I’ve already been actively sourcing and so far I’ve found 30 products.”

Edward Chan, Purchase Manager from Brazil’s Agetech Informatica Ltda, was another satisfied buyer in 2007. He said, "I am looking for windows and doors suppliers in this fair and I have already located a few this morning. This fair offers a good networking opportunity for us." Another buyer, Minoru Fujii, President & Chairman of Japan’s SK Kaken Co Ltd, was also impressed by the quality exhibitors in the 2007 fair. "In this fair, I am glad to meet with many key industry players from different parts of the world, establishing contacts for future business opportunities. I am also very impressed that this fair is very well-organised."

The building industry has been given an important boost by the 10 large-scale infrastructure projects announced in the latest Hong Kong SAR Government policy address. These include rail projects with its estimated cost of US$900 million (HK$7 billion); road projects which will cost over US$2.6 billion (HK$20 billion); cross boundary infrastructure projects; and new urban development areas projects. These huge projects will lead to an exceptional demand for building materials and will benefit all industry players.

Hong Kong’s total exports of building materials (including hardware) reached US$4.4 billion (HK$34.1 billion) in the first four months of 2008, representing a 9.8% increase over the same period last year. The Chinese mainland is the largest export market for Hong Kong’s building materials and hardware, recording nearly 10% increase in the first four months of 2008.

It is important to note that the Chinese mainland is the world’s largest export market, taking in more than half of the total exports of building materials & hardware around the world. This fair offers unrivalled opportunities for international buyers to source from the Chinese mainland suppliers.

The Hong Kong International Furniture Fair, Eco Expo Asia and the HKTDC Hong Kong International Lighting Fair 2008 will runconcurrently. Together, these events provide serious trade visitors with myriad opportunities for exploring new business. For more information contact Peter Bosevski at peter.bosevski@tdc.org.hk

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Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is the international marketing arm for Hong Kong-based traders, manufacturers and service providers. HKTDC promotes Hong Kong as a platform for doing business with China and Asia via Trade Fairs www.hktdc.com