The Chongqing International Expo Center, the biggest exposition center in West China, held 146 events based on Liangjiang New Area's advantage as an open platform for events. Compared with 2013, the exhibition area increased 50 percent in 2014.

This year, the Chongqing International Expo Center will put the focus on promoting its event business and some other new businesses, including culture, shows and fashion, to make a bigger contribution to the development of China's cultural industry.

"In 2014, altogether 146 events were held in the Chongqing International Expo Center, which means that an event was held in the center every two and a half days," said a staff member from the expo center. "The exposition area of the Chongqing International Expo Center reached 1.18 million square meters in 2014, 1.7 times as big as the exposition area in 2013," the staff member added.

Also, the Chongqing International Expo Center made a breakthrough in introducing international and domestic exhibitions. In 2014, the center held six international exhibitions, including the 72nd China International Medical Equipment Fair (CMEF), demonstrating the attractiveness of the Chongqing International Expo Center for international events.

In 2015, the center will focus on developing its culture and fashion businesses. On January 15, the National Exhibition Economy Report was released by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade in Kunming. According to the report, the growth of the event industry has slowed down. In the face of the slowing growth, the Chongqing International Expo Center emphasized the market-oriented strategy, tried to establish a new economic growth point and promoted the development of the event industry in different dimensions. In regards to the culture and fashion business, the expo center will utilize Lijiang New Area's policies and strengthen cooperation with performance management companies. In regards to resident consumption, the expo center will try to expand the market in different areas, including wedding ceremonies, constructing the center into a new landmark for residential consumption.

The development of the event industry will also promote the development of related industries, including transportation, advertising, commerce, catering and tourism. According to statistics, there were 630 events held in Chongqing with a total exhibition area of 5.6 million square meters. About 75 percent of the large scale exhibitions were held in the Chongqing International Expo Center. The exhibition area of the expo center is expected to exceed 2 million square meters with an income of 2.5 billion yuan ($400 million). Also, it is expected to drive the related industries to exceed revenue of 20 billion yuan.

Edited by Michael Thai