Inaugural 2012 China Sourcing Fairs in Brazil sold out: Fairs strengthen the country's position as South America's fastest growing economy

HONG KONG, July 16, 2012 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- Global Sources (NASDAQ: GSOL) announced today that the first ever China Sourcing Fairs to be held in Sao Paulo, Brazil, have sold out. The China Sourcing Fairs in Brazil, which will feature over 500 supplier booths from Greater China and India, are managed by Milton Exhibits under license from Global Sources.

The events will be held August 14-16, 2012, at the Imigrantes Exhibition Center, Sao Paulo. The co-located shows will cover electronics, gifts & premiums, garments & textiles and hardware & building materials mainly from quality Greater China suppliers. The shows will also include a selection of products from India manufacturers at the co-located India Sourcing Fair.

The inaugural China Sourcing Fairs in Sao Paulo are set to be the largest China-products exhibitions ever to be held in Brazil, with buyers attending from Brazil as well as surrounding countries. The early sell out demonstrates the importance of the burgeoning Brazil market especially to mainland China suppliers, as China stands out as Brazil's largest trading partner.

"Brazil has proven itself a critical trading partner to China as evidenced by the booming growth rate of 30 percent year-on-year in exports from mainland China in 2011," said Tommy Wong, President of Global Sources Exhibitions. "Moreover, mainland China is Brazil's largest trading partner. This further supports the Chinese government's implementation of their 'going out' strategy -- an export-focused policy in key emerging markets that supports growing demand for reliable and competitive China products."

Strong government support from China and India is demonstrated by the attendance of group pavilions from Guangdong, Hebei, Hunan and Tianjin, the Hong Kong Exporters' Association, Federation of Indian Export Organisations, and well known electronic brands TCL, Desay and Foryou Group. The Brazil China Sourcing Fairs are the most recent additions to the series of Fairs held in the up-and-coming markets of Dubai, Mumbai, Johannesburg, and Miami, which serves Latin America.

The events are supported by the Brazil-China Chamber (CCIBC) which will arrange trade matching sessions for buyers and exhibitors in addition to sending liaisons to the Fairs.

In anticipation of the upcoming events, Uta Schwietzer, Director of Brazil-China Chamber commented: "The CCIBC is very excited about China Sourcing Fairs particularly since the events' announcement last October. Brazil has risen from the seventh to the sixth largest economy in the world. Brazil's strong rate of growth has clearly become a major factor to suppliers and investors seeking sound trading partnerships to bolster their portfolio against those economies struggling through the global economic recovery."

Brazil has emerged as one of the fastest growing emerging markets in the world and currently maintains the highest growth rate among South American countries. In 2011, Brazil outstripped the U.K. with a GDP of nearly $2.5 trillion, placing it as the sixth largest economy in the world. Brazil's growing middle class composes about half of the country's population and garners an aggregate purchasing power of nearly $1 trillion. This bodes well for its further growth.

More details about the China Sourcing Fair in Brazil are available at http://www.chinasourcingfair.com/brazil.

About Global Sources

Global Sources is a leading business-to-business media company and a primary facilitator of trade with Greater China.

The core business facilitates trade between Asia and the world using English-language media such as online marketplaces (http://www.globalsources.com), print and digital magazines, sourcing research reports, private sourcing events, trade shows, and online sourcing fairs.

Over 1.18 million international buyers, including 85 of the world's top 100 retailers, use these services to obtain product and company information to help them source more profitably from overseas supply markets. These services also provide suppliers with integrated marketing solutions to build corporate image, generate sales leads and win orders from buyers in more than 240 countries and territories.

Global Sources' other businesses provides Chinese-language media to companies selling to and within Greater China. These services include online web sites, print and digital magazines, seminars and trade shows. In mainland China, Global Sources has a network of more than 40 office locations and a community of over 4 million registered online users and magazine readers of its Chinese-language media.

Now in its fifth decade, Global Sources has been publicly listed on the NASDAQ since 2000.