The 2018 Taiwan International Fastener Show, the world’s third-largest and Asia’s second-largest professional trade show, kicked off in Kaohsiung with more than 415 manufacturers using 1,107 booths in a display area of approximately 20,000 square meters, the largest ever in scale in the events’s history.
The first day saw 1,570 international buyers taking part in the event, up 12 percent from 2016. The 2018 event is expected to attract more than 2,200 buyers from 82 countries to purchase the Taiwan-made products, which will greatly increase business opportunities for the local suppliers.
The first-day show ended on a high note last night with the VIP dinner of the opening ceremony attended by Yang Jen-ni, director-general of the Bureau of Foreign Trade (BOFT) under the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA); TAITRA President and CEO Walter Yeh, Taiwan Industrial Fasteners Institute (TIFI) Chairman Tsai Tu-chin, and Kaohsiung Economic Development Bureau Director-General Tseng Wen-sheng among others.
Germany-based leading buyer REYHER with annual sales of US$4 billion is to conduct a procurement meeting on Wednesday April 11.
Aside from displaying industry-transforming intelligent manufacturing processes and equipment on show grounds, buyers are further invited to factory tours in the nearby fastener base Gangshan after the procurement meetings.
To note, the “1-on-1 employment meetings for global talents in the fastener industry” debuts to help Taiwan companies that aim to expand markets overseas scout for foreign language talents and technicians. “Seminars on business opportunities in India and Indonesia will also be conducted, coordinating with the government’s New Southbound Policy, to help businesses grasp a better understanding of Southeast Asian markets,” emphasized Yeh.
Meanwhile, the Global Fastener Summit held Tuesday April 10 demonstrated Taiwan’s resolve in carving out the path to becoming the world’s new “Automotive Fastener Empire.” .
With products widely versatile and applied to industries ranging from the motorcycle, automobile, aerospace, medical, architecture, machinery to the information technology industry, Taiwan’s fastener industry is evidently export-led. Some 90 percent of products are exported and out of which 70 percent are shipped to Europe and America.
Expressing optimism towards the current economical circumstances, Yang said: “According to the World Economic Outlook updated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), a warming economic environment worldwide can be seen. We hope this allows Taiwan’s fastener industry the chance to shine on a global platform.”