On October 5, the 9th China International Import Expo (CIIE) marked the 30-day countdown to its opening. Interviews reveal that as the Expo draws near, exhibitors are rolling out their strongest-ever lineup of global debuts and innovative arrangements across sessions, demonstrating their long-term commitment and firm confidence in the Chinese market.
The 9th CIIE will be held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai) from November 5 to 10. According to previous disclosure by the China International Import Expo Bureau, 265 Fortune Global 500 enterprises and industrial leaders have signed up for the Expo, an increase of 10 from the same period last year. A total of 169 companies and 30 overseas exhibition organizers are "full attendees" who have participated in all nine editions.
Consumer Goods & Beauty: Frequent Debuts and Premieres, Further Investment in the Chinese Market
Global apparel retail brand UNIQLO announced its participation for the seventh consecutive year, showcasing at the Consumer Goods Exhibition Area under the theme "City of Inspiration". At its 1,000-square-meter booth, UNIQLO plans to transform daily life into an interactive and immersive lifestyle space. It is reported that on October 30, the UNIQLO SHANGHAI Global Flagship Store, serving customers for 13 years, will reopen after renovation on Huaihai Middle Road in Shanghai. At this CIIE, UNIQLO will stage the global debut of its collaborative collection with world-renowned designers, and for the first time assemble 12 products developed based on consumer feedback. In recent years, more than 10 new products debuting at CIIE have entered consumers’ lives. Leveraging the strong spillover effect of CIIE, these products have moved from exhibition booths to stores nationwide.
The Estée Lauder Companies officially unveiled its CIIE exhibition theme for this edition on October 5 — 80 Years of Beauty, Envision What Has Not Been Seen. Coinciding with the Group’s 80th anniversary, Stéphane de La Faverie, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Group, will attend CIIE for the first time this year. This also marks his debut on this open cooperation platform since taking office in January 2025. Stéphane de La Faverie stated that CIIE serves as a vital platform bringing together global innovative ideas, connecting consumers and partners, and translating innovation into development opportunities. The booth this year consists of four chapters: Born For You, Created For You, Co-Created With You, The Unseen Is Here. Centered on its 17 brands available in China, the Group will roll out new product launches and innovative technologies.
L’Oréal will participate in the 9th CIIE with the theme "Odyssey of Beauty", staging Asia premieres for three beauty tech innovations: Kérastase K-SPA salon-grade treatment, Lancôme Absolue Light Therapy Mask Device and Multi-Effect Light Hair Styling Wand. Meanwhile, achievements from three open innovation initiatives — the BIG BANG Beauty Tech Co-Creation Program, Beauty Tech Hackathon and Sustainable Innovation Accelerator — will be unveiled collectively. As a nine-time full attendee, L’Oréal has launched dozens of beauty technologies via CIIE, including the YSL Lipstick Printer, a star exhibit of previous expos. L’Oréal noted that it expects to continue relying on CIIE’s spillover effect to bring global innovations "into China", and join local ecosystem partners to help Chinese innovations "go global".
First-time exhibitor Ganso Food will showcase under the theme "Oriental Nutri-Culture, Gifts for the World", presenting health-focused cakes, new products of the "Savory Taste" series and IP co-branded creative cakes. Huang Yanda, General Manager of Ganso Food, said CIIE is an important platform for opening-up, cooperation and mutual benefit. Ganso’s debut reflects its confidence in long-term development in the Chinese market, as well as a brand-new starting point for exchanges and cooperation. "We hope to leverage this world-class window of CIIE to exchange insights with premium global food enterprises and bring more healthy and exquisite products to Chinese consumers."
Healthcare & Medical Industry: Deepened Full-value-chain Layout, "CIIE Babies" Accelerate Commercialization
AstraZeneca, a long-time CIIE full attendee, will feature a roughly 1,000-square-meter booth in the Medical Equipment and Healthcare Exhibition Area. Centered on five pillars — scientific R&D, innovative collaboration, production and supply, patient access and sustainable development, it will present its full-value-chain layout in China and AI strategy. Lin Xiao, General Manager of AstraZeneca China, remarked that CIIE is not only a golden symbol of China’s high-standard opening-up, but also a key platform where global innovation meets China’s opportunities. At this year’s Expo, AstraZeneca will premiere three cutting-edge innovative therapies in China, including baxdrostat, an innovative hypertension drug. After eight sessions of CIIE, AstraZeneca has showcased a total of 20 innovative medicines dubbed "CIIE Babies", covering oncology, respiratory and immunology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolic diseases, rare diseases and other sectors.
Boehringer Ingelheim, a world-leading biopharmaceutical enterprise, will participate this year under the theme "Advancing Innovation for More Health", bringing 14 cutting-edge innovations. In human pharmaceuticals, sovaglutide, a glucagon/GLP-1 dual receptor agonist, will reappear at the Expo; three globally advanced pipeline candidates will have their China debuts. In animal health, CANINEBEAT AI, a first-in-class AI-powered digital canine cardiac auscultation solution, will make its China premiere.
Su Yanning, President and CEO of Boehringer Ingelheim Greater China, said: "This year, we bring forward our cutting-edge innovation pipeline and embrace a key milestone in upgrading our China strategy. The company continues to advance its innovation layout in China. Going forward, we hope to use CIIE as an open platform to enable more innovations to benefit patients and jointly create greater value." It is reported that in August this year, Boehringer announced another upgrade to its China strategy and will set up a brand-new R&D center in Zhangjiang, Shanghai. By 2030, the company expects to secure about 20 registration approvals for its human pharmaceutical business.
Merck will attend CIIE for the eighth consecutive year under the theme "Science for Innovation, Synergy for the Future". It will showcase roughly 30 innovative medicines approved and marketed in China, covering vaccines, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, anti-infectives and rare diseases. The enterprise plans to introduce more than 50 new products and new indications to China over the next five years. Among them, Sotatercept, the world’s first breakthrough biologic targeting the core pathological mechanism of pulmonary arterial hypertension, was launched in China in June this year, with expanded indications approved in September. Aprocitentan was launched in China in September. As of September 2026, Keytruda, Merck’s PD-1 inhibitor, has obtained approvals for 22 indications in China, covering 13 cancer types.
Jeffrey Mazza, Chairman and CEO of Medtronic, has confirmed that he will lead the corporate executive team to the 9th CIIE, marking his first visit to the Expo. As a full attendee of CIIE, Medtronic will exhibit around 120 innovative products and solutions in cardiology and vascular care, neuroscience, surgical innovations and diabetes management. Its lineup of debuts and exhibition scale hit record highs across all previous editions. Multiple innovations integrate AI algorithms and intelligent monitoring technologies, reflecting the trend of deep integration between medical technology and digital intelligence.
Highlighted Effect of the Open Platform: Chinese Innovations Going Global
Journalists learned that the gains accumulated over eight CIIE sessions have continuously translated into tangible industrial outcomes.
For example, in biomedicine, relying on CIIE’s powerful spillover effect, AstraZeneca actively accelerates the transformation from "exhibits to commodities and commodities benefiting people". Multiple "CIIE Babies" speed up approval and market launch through the Expo platform. Boehringer Ingelheim has attended for eight consecutive years, displaying nearly 50 innovative products and solutions in previous expos. Many achievements have realized the leap from "exhibits" to "commodities" and from "premiere" to clinical benefits. Since 2025, three new drugs including metelimumab, setrusumab and buparlisib, plus five indications, have gained marketing approval in China, with some products approved synchronously or even launched globally for the first time.
Meanwhile, CIIE has become an important pivot for multinationals to promote Chinese innovations worldwide. According to Boehringer Ingelheim, Boehringer Ingelheim China has fully participated in all the company’s key clinical trials and over 70% of early-stage clinical studies, serving as an essential part of its global R&D network.
L’Oréal also regards the Chinese market as a source and accelerator of innovation. Its BIG BANG Beauty Tech Co-Creation Program covers L’Oréal North Asia. Over six years, it has attracted more than 2,800 start-ups and incubated over 100 innovation projects. Several winning enterprises have received investment from L’Oréal. This year, BIG BANG further focuses on "AI+" value creation, and 22 winning enterprises from North Asia and France will present their achievements at the booth.
Industry insiders noted that on the 30-day countdown to the 9th CIIE, multinational enterprises demonstrate unprecedented enthusiasm and innovative exhibition plans, testifying to the core position of the Chinese market in their global strategy. As China’s golden symbol of high-standard opening-up, CIIE keeps unleashing strong spillover effects, promoting two-way interaction between global innovation and China’s opportunities, and enabling the world to share Chinese innovations.
Source: Shanghai Securities News
