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Exhibitors, visitors happy on first day of Computex

Computex Taipei 2003 doesn't appear to have been hurt by its postponement from June, as both exhibitors and visitors on the first day of the fair yesterday attached great importance to Asia's largest trade show.

"I think Taiwan is still in a leading position in manufacturing high-tech products in the world, which makes Computex an important event for high-tech companies," said Peggy Yuan (袁蓓芳), international procurement officer at Noah International Taiwan Corp, a Japan-based retailer of computer peripherals.

Yuan returned from CeBIT Asia in Shanghai on Sunday and said the scale of China's largest IT trade show is just one-tenth that of Computex, while the responses from buyers there were not as fervent as she had seen in Taipei.

According to China External Trade Development Council (CETRA), organizer of Computex, there were 9,568 buyers and foreign reporters on the first day of the show, up from 9,253 the same day last year.

According to CETRA, the number of exhibitors and booths broke a 22-year record. There are 1,241 local and foreign exhibitors this year, who have set up 2,419 booths.

"I'm glad to see crowds of visitors come back and pack the exhibition hall," said Denny Jang, assistant manager in the exhibition team of Electronic Industries Association of South Korea.

Another buyer said he would never miss Computex.

"I've visited Computex a few times to purchase products and look for business partners for my company, and my previous experiences were pretty good," said Ronen Meir, chief executive officer of Active Cool Ltd, an Israeli manufacturer of cooling systems for PC processors and semiconductors.

The annual computer trade fair had been scheduled for June, but was delayed after concerns that the SARS epidemic would keep both vendors and visitors away. The show runs through Friday at the Taipei World Trade Center Exhibition Halls I, II and III.

In addition to a variety of computer components and peripherals, this year's event also features integrated-circuit (IC) design products and flat-panel displays for the first time.

"IC design and flat-panel displays are becoming promising industries in Taiwan," Minister of Economic Affairs Lin Yi-fu (林義夫) said at the opening ceremony yesterday.

"The production value of flat-panel displays in Taiwan is expected to exceed NT$400 billion this year from NT$320 billion in 2002," he said.

President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), however, said being a major manufacturer of high-tech products is not enough.

"Taiwan has the perfect environment and conditions for multinational companies to set up research and development centers," he said at the ceremony.

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