The 100th session of the Chinese Export Commodities Fair (CECF), also known as the Canton Fair, ended Monday with an estimated US$34.06 billion in deals.

CECF spokesman Xu Bing said the value was 5.7 percent up from this year's spring session, and 15.7 percent up from last year's autumn session.

The biannual fair has been held in the spring and autumn in the southern business hub of Guangzhou since 1957. It is the biggest of its kind in China, with contracts accounting for a quarter of national exports.

Xu said the fair had attracted 192,691 buyers from 212 countries and regions, including 106,716 from around Asia, the leading source of buyers, followed by Europe, America, and Africa.

With Christmas two months away, the number of buyers from Europe had climbed 19.3 percent from the 1999 session to 40,596, and the number from America rose 3.4 percent to 26,021.

Xu said deals on electro-mechanical products were worth US$13.82 billion, 40.6 percent of the total. Light industry product contracts were worth US$11.55 billion, 33.9 percent of the total.

Deals on garments were worth US$2.9 billion, textile products US$2.51 billion and farm produce US$1.1 billion.

EU buyers struck the largest sum of deals at US$11.59 billion, followed by US$5.01 billion by US buyers and US$4.06 billion with purchasers from the Middle East.

Xu said private businesses contributed to 48.2 percent of the total contract value, or US$16.4 billion. Deals from state-owned enterprises were worth US$12.9 billion and those from foreign-funded firms US$4.76 billion.

The 12-day fair is divided into two phases, the first from October 15 to 20, and the second from October 25 to 30.

The first phase showcases textiles, garments and health products, household appliances, tools, small vehicles, and other hardware.

The second phase features farm produce, foodstuffs, tea and kitchenware, decorations, toys, sports goods, and office supplies.

The fair had 31,408 standard booths at the CECF Liuhua Complex and Pazhou Complex, 1,350 more than this year's spring session.

(Xinhua News Agency October 31, 2006)