A large-scale marine expo featuring impressive exhibits from East Asian countries got underway on Wednesday at Qingdao World Expo City, a landmark of Qingdao West Coast New Area.

With a theme of "Towards Greater Openness and Connectivity - Blue Ocean and Technology", the East Asia Marine Expo was an important part of the 2019 East Asia Marine Cooperation Platform Qingdao Forum.

The four-day event, which runs until Saturday and is organized by Qingdao-based Huangfa Group, gathered more than 600 exhibitors from over 60 countries and regions. More than 30,000 products are being showcased.

Focusing on "ports, shipping, finance and trade", the expo, boasting an exhibition area of some 40,000 square meters, is designed as a high-end and professional platform to showcase the country's complete marine industrial chain.

The marine industry's professional exhibition spans an area of 30,000 sq m with six sections. Visitors have explored nearly 10,000 examples of the latest high-tech equipment, products and technologies from home and abroad. They cover marine engineering, ocean science and technology, as well as marine biotechnology and seawater desalination.

There are also displays on the latest achievements in the areas of port shipping, financial trade, and artificial intelligence.

More than 60 Fortune Global 500 enterprises and leading trading companies have gathered at the expo to showcase their cutting-edge technologies and products. They include global leader in engineering and manufacturing, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, China Shipbuilding Industry Corp, one of China's largest shipbuilding conglomerates, domestic tech giant Huawei and e-commerce giant JD, as well as global automobile marques Mercedes-Benz and BMW.

Also available to visitors is a dazzling display of foreign food, smart furniture, maternal healthcare products, cosmetics and skin care products, handicrafts and marine commodities, as well as other special commodities at the East Asia Commodity Exhibition.

Covering an area of 10,000 sq m, the exhibition has gathered companies from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries, as well as Japan, South Korea and other countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative to present their standout products.

The cultures, customs and unique charm of East Asia have been a highlight of the expo.

Major topics under discussion at 2019 EAMCP Qingdao Forum

The China Pilot Free Trade Zone Building and East Asia Marine Cooperation Forum

The sub-forum, themed "Institutional Innovation and Marine Economy", followed China's announcement to establish six new FTZs late last month. During the sub-forum, a report focusing on institutional innovation in China's FTZs was unveiled. Institutional innovation is considered a key part in the development of FTZs. The China (Qingdao) FTZ Strategy Research Institute under the University of International Business and Economics and FTZ 50 Forum Research Institute were also established.

The East Asia Seaport Alliance Conference

Themed "New Trade Pattern, New Port and Shipping Future", the conference attracted more than 150 experts, scholars and entrepreneurs from countries and regions including Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore to discuss exchanges and cooperation among ports. Launched in 2016, the conference has connected closely ports among East Asian countries as well as shipping service providers. During the conference, a report on container shipping among ports in East Asia was released.

The International Marine Fisheries Development Forum

The sub-forum had "Harmony among Mankind and the Ocean for Green Development" as its theme. More than 100 participants from home and abroad including representatives of marine fishery institutions, experts and scholars attended the sub-forum and discussed how to develop a healthy and modernized fishery industry. Participants hoped that more people could understand the concept of harmony between mankind and the ocean.

The Workshop on UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development

With the theme of "Building a Blue Partnership of Oceans for a Shared Future", the two-day workshop invited more than 40 researchers and scientists from 11 countries and international organizations to take part. The participants mainly focused on six goals of the Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-30) proposed by the United Nations.

The East Asia Marine Culture and Tourism Development Forum

Under the theme of "New Dimensions of East Asia Marine Culture and Tourism Cooperation", the sub-forum invited hundreds of experts, scholars and entrepreneurs across the world to discuss experiences and the new trends in marine culture and tourism in East Asia as well as practical cooperation in the future, which was embodied in a cooperative initiative.